Palmistry

Forum Special 2024

Split screen: the drawing of a woman sitting at a real table perfectly decked out eats and eats and eats. Maria has her palm read; she finds family photos between the lines of her hand. “Are you possessive?” Film 8 of the Forum Special programme “Ten Short Films by Maria Lassnig”, which we are showing to complement Anja Salomonowitz’s film Sleeping with a Tiger from the Forum main programme. Maria Lassnig’s cinematic works are exercises in body transformations: Gratifying frictions, lively critiques, wonderful ideas, sometimes hand-drawn and sung by the director herself. Sketches and animation. Ideas about women in relationships are put slyly in motion.

1. Baroque Statues, 1970-74
2. Encounter, 1970
3. Iris, 1971
4. Chairs, 1971
5. Selfportrait, 1971
6. Shapes, 1972
7. Couples, 1972
8. Palmistry, 1974
9. Art Education, 1976
10. The Ballad of Maria Lassnig, co-directed by Hubert Sielecki, 1992

by Maria Lassnig
with Dona Craig, George Heyward Austria / USA 1973 English 10’ Colour

With

Dona Craig
George Heyward

Crew

Director	Maria Lassnig
Music	George Heyward
Vocals	Dona Craig
With the Voices of	Dona Craig, George Heyward

World sales

Sixpackfilm

http://www.sixpackfilm.com http://www.sixpackfilm.com

Photos

Maria Lassnig

Born in Kappel am Krappfeld in 1919. Graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna. Since 1950 international exhibitions and awards. Together with Arnulf Rainer and Oswald Oberhuber founded the informal painting movement in Austria. Lived abroad in Paris (1961–1968) and New York (1968–1980). Member of Women/Artist/ Filmmakers, Inc. New York (1974–1980). 1980–1990 Professor of the Master Class for Experimental Design at the College of Applied Arts in Vienna. Founded the only Austrian teaching studio for animated film in 1982. Maria Lassnig died in Vienna in 2014.

Filmography (selection)

1970 Baroque Statues; short film · Encounter; animation 1971 Iris; short film · Chairs; animation · Selfportrait; animation 1972 Shapes; animation · Couples; animation 1974 Palmistry; animation 1976 Art Education; animation 1992 Maria Lassnig Kantate (The Ballad of Maria Lassnig); co-director: Hubert Sielecki, short film

Bio- & filmography as of Berlinale 2024