Alternating between the shadow of a prison cell door closing and scans of the wall of a model prison, Russell Prison sequence presents scrolling quotes from Bertrand Russell concerning the misuse of power.
The video was created for The Bertrand Russell Reading Room, a 2018 installation at McMaster University, Ontario, which addressed the life and work of Bertrand Russell, a British intellectual and aristocrat who was one of the first people to contest conscription during the First World War. The installation included a recreation of Russell's prison cell.
Bertrand Russell Reading Room Jail Door (2018)
Installation view of The Bertrand Russell Reading Room (2018) Bruce Barber, at McMaster University, Ontario, Canada (2018)
Other works in this series
Bruce Barber
The Bertrand Russell Reading Room: Russell NYC Trace (2018)
A time lapse video of New York City, overlaid with quotes from Bertrand Russell on the nature of capitalism, exploitation, and happiness.
Related interview
No-One Works Alone
No-One Works Alone
Interview
With a dozen video works from 1973-2019 now on CIRCUIT, renowned New Zealand/Canadian artist Bruce Barber sat down with Mark Williams to discuss a career spent working inside and outside the art world.