Click Here to View Website: David Michalek: Portraits in Dramatic Time.
I attended Paul Ekman’s discussion of emotion in Portraits In Dramatic Time, the video display on the face of the Koch Theatre in Lincoln center Plaza (until July 31). H
The discussion panel included David Michalek, the portrait artist who conceived the pieces and three of the actors in the display, including Sarita Chowdry of Mississippi Masala and other movies.
The videos are shot in ultra-high speed cameras of 10-15 second actions, which then take about 10-20 minutes to watch. Paul Ekman, who has studied emotions for decades and whose book, Emotions Revealed summarizes this work, says that until he saw these segments, he thought he had seen everything about facial expression of emotion. But, watching this extremely slow motion display is like looking into a microsope for the first time: seeing a world that has always been there, that surrounds us, that we can now observe. Paul saw sequential recruiting of facial muscles into a brief moment of fury, or profound mourning (Chowdry) or the blossoming joy as a toddler is past into the arms of his mother (an actress dancing) and spies her father (strumming the mandolin).
He also noted brief moments of “flatness” of affect — a hint of deceit –as even an experienced actor tries to display an intense
emotion. Chowdry’s expression of mourning is painfully magnetic, evoking compassion and even tears in those who watched.
I have written a paper summarizing Paul Ekman’s emotions research and its implications for psychoanalysis that I hope will be accepted for publication in the near future and then can be posted on the blog.
Those who can, should try to get to the exhibit, each evening from 845. Buy a gelato and sit in the chairs nearby, or perch on the ledge of the fountain. It’s NY’s “drive-in” theatre for July.
NS