General Idea
Life & Work by Sarah E.K. Smith
Video Art
Video was central to the work of General Idea throughout the twenty-five years they
worked together. The format connected to their interest in performance art and some of
their videos from the 1970s document performances staged by the artists.
LEFT: General Idea filming Light On Documentation, 1971–74. Jorge Zontal is pictured in the foreground, while in the background Felix Partz films with a Sony Portapak,
photograph by AA Bronson RIGHT: Video still from General Idea, Double Mirror Video (A Borderline Case), 1971, black and white videotape, 5 min., 50 sec., Collection General
Idea
The advent of the Sony Portapak allowed a single individual to carry and use video
recording equipment, portability that helped to spur artists’ use of video. General Idea
was captivated by this new technology and used the Portapak in What Happened, 1970.
The group specifically employed video to document the What Happened performance
and The 1970 Miss General Idea Pageant, 1970, which were both staged at the
Festival of Underground Theatre. In turn, the What Happened installation periodically
featured video footage of the performance and also included a closed-circuit video setup. General Idea continued to work with the Portapak for other projects in the period,
including Light On Documentation, 1971–74, a black and white exploration of space
through mirrors and light. From footage shot while making Light On Documentation,
General Idea created Double Mirror Video (A Borderline Case), 1971, which was just
over five minutes long. General Idea also used the Portapak to document The 1971 Miss
General Idea Pageant, 1971.11
Among the works that influenced General Idea were Kenneth Anger’s (b. 1927)
short experimental film Eaux d’artifice, 1953, and Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome,
1954.12 The works of Canadian artist Michael Snow (b. 1928) were another influence
on General Idea, particularly his renowned experimental film Wavelength, 1967.
13
Other
influences included Jack Smith’s (1932–1989) Flaming Creatures, 1963, and Susan
Sontag’s (1933–2004) 1964 essay “Notes on ‘Camp,’” both of which helped to shape
General Idea’s approach to camp—a sensibility of “artifice and exaggeration.”
14
Bronson
explained, “Basically these films taught us that we should not be ashamed of or avoid
camp but rather embrace it.”
15
As the group began to focus on the narrative of The 1984 Miss General Idea
Pageant and its associated Pavillion, they used video to advance the fiction of Miss
General Idea. Blocking, 1974, presents footage from a performance at Western Front,
64
Film still from Michael Snow, Wavelength,
1966–67, 16mm film, colour, sound, 45 min.,
National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa