MoMA to Screen Steve McQueen’s Short Film ‘Static’ Throughout the Summer
We’re still a while away from “Widows,” Steve McQueen’s highly anticipated follow-up to his Best Picture–winning “12 Years a Slave.” In the meantime, New Yorkers can visit the Museum of Modern Art beginning May 6 to see a digital projection of “Static,” a 35mm film McQueen made in 2009 to commemorate President Obama’s motion to reopen the Statue of Liberty to the public following its closure after 9/11.
READ MORE: ‘Get Out’ Star Daniel Kaluuya Joins Steve McQueen’s ‘Widows’ Alongside Viola Davis
Here’s how MoMA describes the work, which came after “Hunger” and before “12 Years a Slave”: “Shot from a helicopter circling the Statue of Liberty on Liberty Island, in New York Harbor, the film captures Lady Liberty both in furtive, detailed close-ups and from a greater remove. As suggested by the work’s title, the statue remains fixed, intended to be gazed at from afar, even as the many perspectives from which it is encountered are subject to change. Accompanied by the roaring sound of the helicopter blades, the piece is marked by unease and uncertainty, showcasing and scrutinizing one of the most iconic symbols of the US within the urban surroundings of New York City and New Jersey.”
The installation comes as part of MoMA’s Inbox series of newly acquired works and will be held in the Donald B. and Catherine C. Marron Atrium throughout the summer. Viola Davis, Daniel Kaluuya, Michelle Rodriguez and Elizabeth Debicki will star in “Widows,” which is being written by “Gone Girl” scribe Gillian Flynn.
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