The Centre d’Art Contemporain Genève is happy to announce the first personal presentation of the films of Ernie Gehr (1941, Milwaukee) in an arts institution. This exhibition offers an overview of the work of a filmmaker described by The New York Times as «one of the most penetrating and influential avant-garde filmmakers working today».

Ernie Gehr made his first 8mm films in the 1960s and has since made almost 100 films and digital works. Self-taught, he is regarded as one of the masters of experimental cinema. Gehr’s subtle explorations of style and form, together with the poetic sensibility of his work, have had a profound impact on avant-garde cinema.

Bon Voyage, a retrospective of Gehr’s digital works, comprises nine multi-channel video installations. This is the first time these films are shown in Europe and five of them will receive their world premiere at the Centre d’Art Contemporain Genève. This exhibition is dedicated to the City of New York and may be viewed as a contemporary portrait between land and sea of Manhattan Island, where Gehr has lived since 1965.

Ernie Gehr describe his films as “independent and self-contained works asserting their own plastic, digital, and pictorial issues regarding time, perception, the boundaries and extension of the screen rectangle, representation and abstraction.”

The exhibition is accompanied by an extensive catalogue published by Mousse Publishing. It includes a complete chronology of the cineast’s work and life as well as newly commissioned contributions by Andrea Bellini (curator of the exhibition), Ken Eisenstein, John Hanhardt, and a visual essay by the artist.

Born in 1941 in Milwaukee (USA), Ernie Gehr is a Filmmaker closely associated with the Structural film movement of the 70s. His most important works include Serene Velocity (1970) and Side/Walk /Shuttle (1991).

Curated by Andrea Bellini

Cover image: Ernie Gehr, still from Surveillance, 2010, HD Video. Courtesy of the artist.