Exodus
1992 - 1997
8mm film
1min. 17sec.
Two black men carrying an exotic plant walk the streets of London. The camera, held by the artist, follows them. The film ends with a greeting by one of the men before they both get on a bus. Shot in Super 8 like a home video, this silent short is one of Steve McQueen's first works.
Exodus draws its strength from its indeterminate nature. The allegorical title responds to the purely anecdotal nature of the story. Illustrating the biblical tale in an amateur video gives it a poetic, humorous side.
McQueen's Exodus was presented for the first time by the Pinault Collection at the Tri Postal in Lille during the 2008 “Passage du temps” (“Passage of Time”) show.
Exodus draws its strength from its indeterminate nature. The allegorical title responds to the purely anecdotal nature of the story. Illustrating the biblical tale in an amateur video gives it a poetic, humorous side.
McQueen's Exodus was presented for the first time by the Pinault Collection at the Tri Postal in Lille during the 2008 “Passage du temps” (“Passage of Time”) show.
Exhibitions
© Steve McQueen
Courtesy the Artist and Marian Goodman Gallery, New York / Paris
