"...videos from [Franklin's] Fermata series allude to the “fermata” in music, which is a term for a note, chord, or rest that is sustained at the performer’s discretion for a duration longer than the indicated time value. Franklin’s videos are continuous loops of athletes such as Jesse Owens, an Olympian diver, or tennis players about to propel themselves into their respective ‘moments of truth.’ Adjusting their foothold, buttressing their muscular pitch, and steeling both psychological and physical will, these moments are the preamble—taut with all that is invested in the pursuit of perfection—to full-throttle force. Expecting exquisite coordination, grace, speed, and exactness, we hold our breath. And as spectators, we share in the ‘fermata’ of the moment. The video triptych played simultaneously on a loop renders the interminable suspension into a kind of purgatorial black hole of tense, unconsummated propulsion."
-Carina Evangelista
Gretchen Hupfel Curator of Contemporary Art |
