''Stairs 1 Geneva'' is a film by

Peter Greenaway Peter Greenaway, (born 5 April 1942) is a Welsh film director, screenwriter and artist. His films are noted for the distinct influence of Renaissance and Baroque painting, and Flemish painting in particular. Common traits in his films are the ...

. It is also a large-scale

art installation Installation art is an artistic genre of three-dimensional works that are often site-specific and designed to transform the perception of a space. Generally, the term is applied to interior spaces, whereas exterior interventions are often called ...

, an exhibition, a catalogue and a CD album.

The film

The film comprises one hundred sequences showing a location in the city of

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

, Switzerland. In 1994, over a period of one hundred days, one hundred white wooden staircases were installed around the city to be climbed by the public. At the top of each staircase was a simple hole framing a "living picture postcard", a perfect "cinema-image by

" accompanied by a commentary of one sentence in French and English, printed below the viewfinder. Greenaway's idea was to create a reflection on location in cinema and to "take films out of the theatres

The event

Searchlight, Spotlights of different colors were installed throughout the city. The event was called "The Stairs: Geneva The Location", and was expanded into a wider project including other cities and other cinematic themes of relaxation. The events were also published in a catalogue form and a musical compact disc (Merrell, March 1995). Stairs001

The installation

Approximately one hundred performers representing typical regional characters, with costumes and props, (

Calvin Calvin may refer to: Names * Calvin (given name) ** Particularly Calvin Coolidge, 30th President of the United States * Calvin (surname) ** Particularly John Calvin, theologian Places In the United States * Calvin, Arkansas, a hamlet * Calvi ...

and his fellows reformers, different spirits of the lake,

Laura Ashley Laura Ashley (née Mountney; 7 September 1925 – 17 September 1985) was a Welsh fashion designer and businesswoman. She originally made furnishing materials in the 1950s, expanding the business into clothing design and manufacture in the 1960s ...

with her bicycle, living statues, etc.), were sited within the framed view of the staircases' viewfinders. They all were specially trained to perform a choreography (by Serge Campardo

every 15 minutes. Each performer was given a luxury Genevan watch to check the time throughout the five or more hours of their performance.

Further details

The film's scenes show day or night views in the exact frame defined by the staircase's viewfinder. Superimposed images make some of the characters of the installation appear and disappear in the frame under different lights, and are linked with different kind of local events, such as a cycle race or a children's choir on the cathedral steps. The voice-over patiently helps the visual description by numbering the scenes by the same number of each staircase, and reading the sentence printed on the viewfinder. Each scene is accompanied by a one-minute music pattern by Patrick Mimra

The soundtrack CD which accompanies the project suggests each piece can be played randomly, just as a visitor could visit the staircases in any order. An exhibition was also set in the Musée d'Art et d'Histoire (Geneva), Musée d'Art et d'Histoire

where lights and slide projections supplemented a display of one hundred sculpted heads found and chosen in the museum depot, as well as one hundred historical helmets.

References

External links

Christophe Gevrey - Geneva Stairs (100 photos of the stairs)Slideshow of the 100 stairs with music by Patrick Mimran
* * {{Peter Greenaway Films directed by Peter Greenaway 1995 films Visual arts exhibitions Installation art works 1990s British films