Works of John Akomfrah: The Airport and Auto Da Fé
John Akomfrah presented his new works in Lisson gallery with the main theme of migration. This artist as no one else knows a lot about it, because he is a migrant too. As John Akomfrah said that he hasn’t destroyed Great Britain and there is no reason other immigrants would. But indeed migration fundamentally changes people’s lives, so it should be a conscious and deliberate step.
The work the Airport (2016) was exhibited in Lisson gallery, London. This work is performed as a three screen film installation in totally dark room which gives you a sense of presents inside the film and every visitor is a witness of all events that appear on the screens. In the room there are some branches, actually three, they are placed one opposite each screen, so everybody can appreciate this work and also think about what the author wanted to say. It’s a calm atmosphere inside but not soothing, because John Akomfrah has raised a lot of problems and questions when he created this film. The film length is about 52 minutes and there is no dialogue. It wasn’t made to impose someone’s point of view, but to show a picture as what it is and allow visitors to make their own conclusions and opinions about what they see. When the film begins there are the landscapes of Athens and Southern Greece. Nature fascinates with its beauty and immediately captures the attention of all. The ghosts, as some critics called them, suddenly appear on the screen. These ghosts are from different periods of human history but here they are together and wander through the empty terminal (“John Akomfrah’s new series of film”, thenational.ae).
The main events take place not amidst beautiful scenery of Greece, but at the airport, empty, desolate and frightening. The Airport symbolizes a long way for people who are waiting for change, and wander through it while waiting for the plane, according to Adrian Searle (“John Akomfrah's Vertigo Sea”, theguardian.com).The ghosts of astronaut in full spacesuit, a flamenco guitarist, an air hostess and others walk together but without communication with each other. They are travelers from different eras unable to share that which they have in common, as Dan Hancox stated (“John Akomfrah’s new series of film”, thenational.ae). I also think it says that everything is changeable but indeed everyone (does not matter if all of actors are from different eras) has same problems, visit same places and walk on the same ground. The airport can be a solution for many problems, but indeed people just running away from it.
The airport film raises an issue of migration. People can migrate in two ways: by ocean and through the gates of the airport. Earlier people changed their lives by crossing the ocean. That gave them a time to think once more during their way about this huge decision. Now everything happens in …
