For my generation, Vincent Moon is an important image-maker. Part of the Blogothèque team, he was at the forefront of music videos, shooting amazing international bands and solo musicians as they were staying in Paris, while on tour. Shot in intimate settings or while walking in the scenic streets of the French capital, he brought a distinctive craftmanship touch and new freshness to documenting musical artists which immediately seduced the audience of the first social media addiction waves. My wife was born and raised in Valparaiso, Chile, and she has also known the work of Moon since an early age. The video artist started to travel with his camera to capture musical moments in various exotic places, still under the banner of his “take away shows”. This part of his work continues to grow in order and magnitude, as illustrated by the mind-blowing recent collaboration with the Icelandic composer Olafúr Arnalds, “When we are born.”
Vincent Moon is already in another place, however, and he has shifted level over the years. The subsequent period of his work turns to document healing ceremonies and rituals around the world. With his project Petites Planètes, Moon collected an impressive scope of sound, music, and video work, that are available through his label. The quality and the depth of his material would make any visual anthropologist blemish and reach for academic excuses.
Last week in Berlin, Moon presented his material in an audacious performance installation at Soma Art, an underground art space in Wedding.
The artist was VJing his own material, producing a soundtrack to a collage of his now-familiar footage. The exhibition space, with its industrial high ceiling, freshly painted in white, was vast and inviting. Young kids were running around, letting the parents sip red wine and delve into the colorful universe of Moon’s travel. A few cushions, benches, and a colorful carpet were enough to provide a cozy feeling to the audience. The delivery of the performance, quite in tune with the material, was devoid of false pretends. Jumping around like a house DJ, Vincent Moon was visibly feeling at home with his crowd, his pictures, and his soundscapes. This playful and lively way of showing footage of initiation and healing ceremonies came across as an honest manner to convey a creative and spiritual journey and share it with the public. Not a devilish “tour de force”, but a straight-forward “tour du monde” and a simple message of inspiration and creativeness, shedding sunlight through the icy rain of Berlin’s darkest moment of the year.
