Strange Victory: A Documentary Film Series Selected by Mark Bradford

On the occasion of ‘Mark Bradford. You Don’t Have to Tell Me Twice’ Hauser & Wirth is pleased to present ‘Strange Victory’—a documentary film series organized by Mark Bradford in collaboration with filmmaker David Wirth.  

The films selected will offer poignant insights into the lives of queer people of color spanning nearly three quarters of a century. Stemming from Bradford’s deeply personal exhibition, the program will explore the multifaceted nature of displacement and the predatory forces that feed on populations driven into motion by crisis. The selections depict the height of the AIDS epidemic, house/ballroom culture, and allude to the pervasive racist and fascist narratives that are central to the history of the United States.   

This film series is free, and guests are welcome to attend all screenings.

Due to limited space, reservations are required. Please indicate which film(s) you wish to see when registering.  

Please note: with the exception of screenings on Friday 19 May the exhibition will not be open during the film series.

Click here to register

Friday 12 May  7 pm

STRANGE VICTORY Directed by Leo Hurwitz 1948 1 hr 11 min

Friday 19 May  7 pm

Exhibition will be open for the screenings

BROTHER OUTSIDER: THE LIFE OF BAYARD RUSTIN

Directed by Nancy Kates and Bennett Singer

2003

1 hr 23 min

Followed by a brief Q&A with Bayard Rustin's partner, Walter Naegle

NON, JE NE REGRETTE RIEN (NO REGRET)

Directed by Marlon Riggs

1993

38 Mins

Wednesday 24 May  7 pm

PORTRAIT OF JASON Directed by Shirley Clarke 1967 1 hr 45 min

Thursday 25 May

JEWEL’S CATCH ONE Directed by C. Fitz 2016 1 hr 25 min

BLACK NATIONS/QUEER NATIONS? Directed by Shari Frilot 1995 59 min

About Mark Bradford Mark Bradford (b. 1961 in Los Angeles; lives and works in Los Angeles) is a contemporary artist best known for his large-scale abstract paintings created out of paper. Characterized by its layered formal, material, and conceptual complexity, Bradford’s work explores social and political structures that objectify marginalized communities and the bodies of vulnerable populations. Just as essential to Bradford’s work is a social engagement practice through which he reframes objectifying societal structures by bringing contemporary art and ideas into communities with limited access to museums and cultural institutions.

Using everyday materials and tools from the aisles of the hardware store, Bradford has created a unique artistic language. Referred to frequently as ‘social abstraction,’ Bradford’s work is rooted in his understanding that all materials and techniques are embedded with meaning that precedes their artistic utility. His signature style developed out of his early experimentation with end papers, the small, translucent tissue papers used in hairdressing; he has since experimented with other types of paper, including maps, billboards, movie posters, comic books, and ‘merchant posters’ that advertise predatory services in economically distressed neighborhoods.