Staff Picks
In Love
Patty Chang
2001
3 Minutes
Staff Picks
Date
March 1-31, 2024
In Love (2001) is a two-channel video installation that follows Untitled (For Abramovic Love Cocteau) (2000) with a similar premise. Two separate scenes in a diptych present the artist with her parents, teary-eyed and seemingly engaging in an intense kiss. Gradually, it is revealed that the film is running in reverse, and Chang and her parents are not sharing a kiss, but an onion––and the tears are a result of the astringency of the onion. As they take turns taking bites from the onion, the tears subside and the onion is reconstituted. In Love corporeally and metaphorically explores parental and familial relations, as well as the blurry boundaries of love. The act of passing the tear-inducing onion back and forth becomes a sacrificial gesture, examining cultural notions of filial piety.
In Love is presented alongside Melons (At A Loss) as part of the March 2025 edition of e-flux Film’s series Staff Picks featuring Patty Chang.
For more information, contact program@e-flux.com.