The very first kiss captured on film was between two naked women. It was recorded by Eadweard Muybridge in his remarkable studies of the human figure in motion in the 1880s. I have animated several of his photographic sequences in my video works, but The Kiss remains my favorite—so full of tenderness and desire, touching the deep roots of ancient lesbianism.
In 2020, a pivotal moment in recent history, when physical desire became almost unbearable due to pandemic restrictions, I wanted to express this feeling through video and incorporated the sequence of The Kiss. The fact that it is a kiss between two women, rather than a man and a woman, heightens the tension and longing for a passion that remains a taboo in many cultures.
Of course, Muybridge likely had no intention of depicting a lesbian kiss. In Victorian times, photographing naked men and women together was unacceptable, which is why he used two women. At the time, it was widely believed that women had little or no sexual desire—an implicit denial of lesbianism. Yet this belief is contradicted by the profound expressiveness of the women in the film sequence—their movements, their bodies, their silent yet powerful connection.
“The First After-Corona Kiss” won the award Premio Borgo 2022 of gallery La scala d’oro, Rome.
On February 23, 2023, there will be a screening of selected videos in the Sala della Chiesa Valdese, Rome – see Screening of 12 videos by Maria Korporal
Screenings and presentations:
• March 8-24, 2024: Corporeazione. La sacralità di una lotta moderna, Palazzo Caccia Canali, Sant’Oreste RM, Italy.
• June 23, 2023: Cuerpo Transparente 2nd edition, Universidad Nacional de Artes, Área Transdepartamental de Crítica de Artes, Buenos Aires, Argentina. See also linktr.ee and instagram for updates and links.
• February 23, 2023: Screening of 12 videos by Maria Korporal in the context of Premio Borgo Video, curated by gallery La scala d’oro, Sala Dionigi (Chiesa Valdese), Rome, Italy.
• December 17, 2022: Cuerpo Transparente, facade of Audiovisual Producción Center Leonardo Favio, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
• November 3-18, 2022: IMAGE PLAY ► International Video Art Festival 2022 (PT), curated by Hernando Urrutia.
• November 1, 2021 – March 27, 2022: Transborda III, Q-TV, curated by Alberto Guerreiro in the Festival Books & Movies, Alcobaça, Portugal.
• November 8-11, 2021: Festival Internacional de Videoarte SPMAV, Pelotas (BR). Screening stil online, click here
• October 30, 2021 and ongoing: Miami New Media Festival (RAW Selection), several venues in all parts of the world.
• November 12 – December 13, 2020: 33rd Festival Les Instants Vidéo 2020, Friche la Belle de Mai, Marseille.
• June 19 – July 26, 2020: UPDATE 20 “ART IS NOT CANCELLED”, Galerie VBK, Berlin.
• June 9, 2020: Connect 2020 – International Videoarts Festival, The Firehouse Cultural Center, Ruskin (Florida).
• May 25, 2020 and ongoing: The Crown of the Corona, online exhibition curated by Boris Kostadinov, Artqol.
• April 23 – May 31, 2020: Maria Korporal Monography. Selected works 2008-2020, on VisualcontainerTV
title: The First After-Corona Kiss
technique: Experimental video and animation
length: 4’05”
year: 2020
photos of the artist: Astrid Astra Indricane
music in the first scene: Live Set for My Castle of Quiet (excerpt) by Thomas Carnacki with Jesse Quattro
music in the last scene: Breathing by Spectacular Sound Productions
concept, images, animation, effects and montage: Maria Korporal
© Maria Korporal 2020
