Last Words First Cry
2013
single-channel HD video, black and white, stereo
5 minutes 54 seconds
Last Words First Cry combines known last words of notable people and the first cries newborn babies have made as recorded at birth in the hospital. The words appear stark on the screen. The sounds are looped and put into rhythm using inspiration from the raga Marwa. There is a productive tension between the resolutely non-verbal and the legible word. Both of these we assume are addressed to us, the viewer, leading to a suspended moment of grace between the being born and the dying.
VIDEO EXCERPT
