The State of Things
2000
Film, 00:03:50.
Materials: 16mm film, B&W, Sound (Optical)
Collection: Courtesy of Rosalind Nashashibi and LUX, London.
Her key formative work The State of Things is an early example of when Nashashibi adopts her lens for capturing the behaviour and interaction in a communal space.
We watch a Salvation Army jumble sale filmed in Glasgow in grainy black and white footage. The main focus here is on the interactions. In considering this as an unadorned utilitarian environment for a particular demographic, that of working class local families and individuals, people of the local community ply through the mass of second hand clothing, and elderly volunteers man the stalls. People, searching for suitable items, keep in close and vying proximity. The audio provides another layer to the film, and initially sits at odds with the imagery. It is in fact the classic love song from the 1920s In Hali Fi Hawaha Agab by the Egyptian songstress Oum Kalsoum. This element that comes from ‘another place’ brings an important characteristic. It demonstrates Nashashibi’s approach of seeing reality as something that is relative, and thus ultimately mutable. By changing one dimension, she creates the sense of an alternative state of mind or sense of place.
