Con Fuoco is one of two video self-portraits by Martin Messier, a work that illustrates his interest in performance and the essential place of the body and movement.
Here, a face is submerged, latent, despite the tension between the air escaping through the nostrils and the water gradually seeping in. Like two elements in conflict within a single body - a struggle experienced internally, in a time of weightlessness. Then the eyes finally open, renewing the hope of seeing the head emerge from the water. To come up for air. Something like a waking dream, perhaps. The features then fade into the waves, the better to dissolve the being.
This subtle interplay between interiority and exteriority, visible and invisible, reflects Martin Messier's artistic quest. He questions our connection to the world, our ability to emerge from ourselves, while exploring the limits of sensory perception and the dissolution of identity.
video, performance and music
Martin Messier
filmed by
Véronique Béland