In Jean Pierre Khazem's video Volume (2000) the viewer is confronted with the image of a voluptuous woman positioned naked in front of the camera. Rather than assuming a still pose, the woman moves her arms very slowly. The film camera is there to record her actions over time, not capture a specific moment. However, the model is conscious of the camera's presence and her actions are influenced by an awareness of its voyeuristic gaze. Although the model's nudity suggests a corporeal intimacy and presupposes a revelation of her identity, in the case of Khazem's model, her identity is concealed by the wax mask she wears on her face. Her real face is hidden and replaced by fake visage, which appears still, cold, cryptic, and even scary.
Museum of the Moving Image, New York Saturday 24 Mar 2007, 4:30 p.m.