The title is portmanteaus, derived from the Filipino words pelikula (film) and kulambo (mosquito net). In English, the title is translated as CiNet (cinema inside net). A site-specific multimedia installation comprises a video of silhouettes of people in transit projected inside the kulambo wall-screen, with fog inside. In some cultures, the mosquito net denotes protection for better sleep, which becomes the threshold and liminal space between the conscious and unconscious states of being. Due to the transparent nature of the fabric, participants can get inside and view the outside, and outsiders can view the inside. At the same time, the silhouettes of the digital projection mix with the shadows of the live viewers inside, thus producing three layers of figure: 1) the figure of the participants, 2) the participant’s shadow, and 3) the recorded shadow following the path where the fabric procure. It is a framed liminal space within a space, a weaver between the realms of inside and outside, virtual and reality, the physical and the mental, the inclusion and exclusion. The fog metaphors an uncertain situation that can obscure our vision. As a portable immersive cinema, Pelikulambo is Lot’s MFA degree artwork exhibited at the UPFI Film Center- an interactive element that offers a participatory site that invites individual-collectives to construct the storytelling.
Pelikulambo
About the Project
Video courtesy of Angelo Roxas
The Framework
The installation is inspired by Henri Bergson’s concept of duration. In his book Matter and Memory, he connected duration with memory. He said that the past is part of the progressive present moment, and the present moment is pure memory, which gradually intensifies. In my artwork, the progression illustration interprets in reverse. The present moment is a culmination of several past events.
The Set-up
The setup features a large, customized mosquito net measuring 18 feet in length, 12 feet in width, and 7 feet in height. The dimension is determined by the distance of projection. The height conforms to the standard height of typical household doors. There are 4 wooden stands covered with white cloth. Each stand housed a humidifier that emitted mist, with projectors positioned on top. Each projectors project on each side of the fabric.
The Process
The artwork, as an ephemeral art form, explores the transience of time and liminality. To align with the artwork, the show starts at 6 PM, as daylight fades into night, and is presented as a one-night event. Ingress in the morning, show for about 3 hours, and de-egresses on the same night.
Silhouettes of people in transit were projected onto the net. It is documentation of street footage of my journey from where I reside to Divisoria – the busiest marketplace in the Philippines, where I procure the fabric.
Viewed from the outside of the kulambo, the virtual silhouette blends with the figures of real people. This implies a threshold between the past and the present, the real and the virtual.
