Watching: Atopia

Overview

The film explores the state of ‘atopia’ that afflicts Socrates in Plato’s *Symposium*. It is an aesthetic experience of stepping outside oneself, which the work conveys by depicting a musical improvisation by cellist Giovanni Sollima as he plays against a backdrop of abstract images created by directly manipulating 35mm film using acid etching, colour, scratches and abrasions. The secret relationship between the musician and his instrument is thus transposed onto the film medium, producing a synaesthetic perception.