La Ferdinanda: Sonata for a Medici-Villa
Rebecca Horn
27/02/2019 | 9 p.m. | Introduction Franziska Stöhr
Filmmuseum München | Tickets 089 / 23 39 64 50
La Ferdinanda: Sonata for a Medici Villa is staged in a grand Renaissance hunting seat. The setting serves as a haven for tranquil repose (for Caterina de Dominicis, former opera singer and owner of the villa), convalescence (for young ballet dancer Simona), hiding (for Dr. Marchetti, after a series of scandals), rehearsal (for the cello player) and celebration (for a wedding party). The villa is a symbol for hidden stories and faded glories, especially for its larger-than-life owner, who wishes to maintain an illusion of luxury and grandeur. In truth, the villa’s residents are all living in a state of suspension or impotence: even the peacocks’ plumage is not strikingly colourful but a ghostly white. (Source: Tate Modern)
Rebecca Horn (born 24 March 1944, Michelstadt, Hesse) is a German visual artist, who is best known for her installation art, film directing, and her body modifications such as Einhorn (Unicorn), a body-suit with a very large horn projecting vertically from the headpiece. She directed the films Der Eintänzer (1978), La ferdinanda: Sonate für eine Medici-Villa (1982) and Buster’s Bedroom (1990). Horn presently lives and works in Paris and Berlin.
La Ferdinanda: Sonata for a Medici-Villa | Federal Republic of Germany 1982 | D+Sc: Rebecca Horn | DOP: Jiri Kadanka | M: Ingfried Hoffmann | C: Valentina Cortese, Javier Escriba, Gisela Hahn, Hans-Peter Hallwachs, Michael Maisky, David Warrilow | 85 min