Mark Alice Durant

The Ukrainian-born Maya Deren was an influential filmmaker, photographer, poet, choreographer, theorist, and more. Even though she completed only six short experimental films in her brief life, she left an unforgettable mark on cinema history. Her first film, Meshes of the Afternoon (1943)—a landmark of the genre that has screened at the Wexner Center several times over the years—inspires artists to this day. A brief resident of Columbus in the 1920s, Deren also collaborated with mid-century cultural icons across disciplines, including Marcel Duchamp, John Cage, Anaïs Nin, and Katherine Dunham.

After conducting years of research, along with interviews featuring some of Deren’s closest collaborators, Durant published Maya Deren, Choreographed for Camera in 2022 with Saint Lucy Books. This powerful portrait, filled with film stills and photographs, examines the complex and sometimes contradictory life and work of this captivating artist.

Durant will read from his book in our Film/Video Theater, where we’ll screen Deren’s A Study in Choreography for Camera (1945, DCP, 3 mins.) and Ritual in Transfigured Time (1946, DCP, 15 mins.) following the talk. Stick around after the event for a book signing in our Lower Lobby.

IMAGE CAPTION
Left to right: Mark Alice Durant, photo: E. Brady Robinson; Maya Deren, Choreographed for Camera book cover, courtesy of Saint Lucy Books.