Peter Liechti’s works and other artist films on tour in Poland

10.05.2005

At the 50th international book fair in Warsaw (from 19 to 22 May 2005), to which Switzerland has been invited as the guest country, SWISS FILMS will be presenting a film series within the framework of a diverse cultural program which features Switzerland and covers the area of tension between art and film. An extensive retrospective of Peter Liechti’s works, as well as other documentary films made by and about artists, will be screened at kino.lab in Warsaw from 20 to 30 May 2005. Two earlier short films by Liechti – “Senkrecht/Waagrecht” and “Kick That Habit” – as well as a live performance by Swiss musician Norbert Möslang, who plays a leading role in both films, are scheduled to launch the retrospective on 20 May, with Peter Liechti being present. Thereafter, a part of the program will travel to Cracow (from 1 to 5 June) and another part to Gdansk (from 14 to 18 June).
In the wake of Peter Liechti’s success at home and abroad in recent years, as well as the fact that his work was screened in Austria at the renowned art-house cinema “Filmcasino” in Vienna and was met with positive response and great interest at the beginning of this year (in February 2005), Polish and East European audiences can also have the opportunity to become acquainted with all the works made by this image and soundtrack collector, annotator and montage specialist, films in which being “on the road” plays a major role. Liechti’s portrait “Signers Koffer” forms the link to the other Swiss films which are either made by or are about artists: “Yugodivas” by Andrea Staka, “Dieter Roth” by Edith Jud, “Hallelujah! The Lord is Mad” by Alfredo Knuchel and “Gambling, Gods and LSD” by Peter Mettler.

Following the screening at kino.lab, which is located at the Center for Contemporary Art in Warsaw – a center for the creation and documentation of all types of art – the entire collection of works will travel, with Liechti, to Cracow to attend the 45th International Documentary Film Festival, an important meeting point for documentary filmmakers from Eastern Europe. The artists’ portraits will be screened at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Gdansk, which fosters film with regular screenings. With these three “striking” partners, an international audience and the setting of the book fair and festival, this film program has been placed in a very appropriate context.

SWISS FILMS has published a documentation on Peter Liechti’s works. The film flyer can be downloaded at: http://www.swissfilms.ch/ser_filmflyer.asp

Zurich, 10 May 2005
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