Here’s Jack
Nicolas Provost’s video art was one of the highlights of Nuit Blanche. Projected as part of Daniel Lanois’ multimedia extravaganza at Nathan Philips Square, Provost’s pieces were provocative and beautifully executed. This image of Jack Nicholson is from a recent piece called Here’s to the New Flesh, in which Provost edits together scenes from dozens of horror movies using a process that generates digital artifacts to create painterly transitions from one image to the next.
The combination of Provost’s projections and Lanois live sets proved irresistible to me. I lingered for nearly two hours in the chilly night air, enjoying Provost’s works, not only for their stunning visuals but also for the ambient soundtracks that were as different from one another as the films were. I suppose this image is very much in the spirit of his work, as it appropriates his appropriation.