Yerant Gianikian, Italian experimental cinema artist, dies at 84

Italian artist Yerant Gianikian, celebrated for his experimental and political cinema, has passed away at the age of 84. Gianikian, working alongside his late partner Angela Ricci Lucchi, created a significant body of work that delved into historical and political themes by reinterpreting archival footage.

For fifty years, Gianikian used film as a medium to explore the past, meticulously rediscovering and re-editing existing archives. His artistic output, developed in collaboration with Ricci Lucchi until her death in 2018, was characterized by its experimental nature and political engagement. The couple met in 1974, with Gianikian coming from an architecture background and Ricci Lucchi from painting. They discovered extensive collections of 9.5mm Pathé-Baby film, featuring images of Italy before World War I and its colonial empire, captured by a fascist sympathizer.

Through their film "Du Pôle à l’Équateur" (1987), the duo recontextualized these found images, allowing them to convey new meanings and expose their underlying issues. This technique established them as prominent figures in the "found footage" genre. Ricci Lucchi once described their artistic partnership, stating, "It was by meeting each other that we became filmmakers. In addition to our feelings for each other, we decided to live together to make films."

Gianikian and Ricci Lucchi's films often employed techniques such as colorization, retouching, reframing, and slow-motion on archival material sourced from various countries. Without voiceovers, but often enhanced with sound effects, their creations frequently explored somber themes like exile, colonization, and particularly war. Their work, including "Nocturne" (1997) filmed in Sarajevo and "Frente a Guernica" (2023), has been presented at major international festivals and retrospectives, including the Venice Biennale and the Centre Pompidou. Their filmography consistently probed the violence inherent in the 20th century, as seen in their 1986 work "Retour à Khodorcuir," which examined the Armenian genocide through the experiences of Gianikian's father, a survivor.

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It was by meeting each other that we became filmmakers. In addition to our feelings for each other, we decided to live together to make films.