Runa Islam

Runa Islam explores the narrative aspects of film and is focused on film's particular themes and challenges. Islam's intense concern with respect to the aesthetic sharpens our attention to film as a medium. The exhibition is in follow-up to The National Museum's concentration on young foreign artists who are represented in the collection and who use film as a central image-creating means of expression.

Runa Islam was born in Bangladesh in 1970 and lives and works in London. Her background includes studies at Middlesex University, 1990-92/1995; the Two Year Residency Programme at the Rijksakademie, Amsterdam, 1997-98; and an M. Phil. from the Royal College of Art, 2002-2004.

"Time Lines"
 The work, "Time Lines" (35mm), which the Museum purchased in 2006, will be shown in the Bank Hall. It is the first film Runa Islam made in 35 mm format. "Time Lines" focuses on the early 20th century building structures in Barcelona, the funicular railways of Montjuic and Tibidado, and a plane that moves in a fixed circle over a crane.

"Time Lines" is a suspenseful deconstruction of time and place. With a hypnotizing rhythm, Runa Islam transports us into different time zones. The film is set in time from around the 19th century up until today, something which the soundtrack underscores. The visual dimension of the film is fascinating both in terms of color tones and camera work, and Islam's fragmented sequences and unexpected camera angles waft us into a dream state.

Runa Islam has participated in The Venice Biennale (2005), More than This! Negotiating Realities, Göteborg International Biennale for Contemporary Art (2005) and 8th International Istanbul Biennial (2003), among others, and her solo exhibitions include: UCLA Hammer Museum, Los Angeles (2005); Dunkers Kulturhus, Helsingborg (2005); Camden Arts Centre, London (2005); Centre d'Art Santa Monica, Barcelona (2005); and MIT List Visual Arts Center, Cambridge, Massachusetts (2003).

This exhibition originates with Bergen Kunsthall. Gavin Jantes is the project director, and Eva Klerck Gange is curator of the exhibition at The National Museum.

Runa Islam
Kuratoren: Gavin Jantes, Eva Klerck Gange
The Museum of Contemporary Art