IMA Essay Club No. 5

We're delighted to host the IMA's Essay Club No. 5 offsite here at UniSC Art Gallery with artist Amanda Bennetts.

Joined by IMA's Program Manager, Madeline Brewer, we'll discuss Jean-Luc Nancy's philosophical essay on surviving his heart transplant, 'L'Intrus (The Intruder)' (2000).

Nancy writes from within the experience of illness, describing the temporality, strangeness, and fragmentation that accompanied his major medical procedure. Nancy questions what it means to be ‘saved’ by something the body resists, reflects on medical management, and asks what is at stake in the deferral of death.

Bennetts will discuss the text in context to her exhibition, Fragmented, divided–yet whole, which explores time as both material and metric for understanding the body.

To complement Nancy's essay, we will screen Claire Denis' 'L'Intrus (The Intruder)' (2004) at 4 pm, prior to Essay Club. Loosely inspired by Nancy’s essay, the film follows a man traversing geographic, familial, and bodily borders in search of his estranged son and a new heart. Less an adaptation than a conceptual parallel, Denis’ film shares Nancy’s preoccupation with self-alienation and the cost of survival.

4–6 pm Film Screening: Claire Denis 'L'Intrus (The Intruder)' (2004)

6–8 pm Discussion with free pizza and drinks

Registrants will receive the essay upon registration, along with details on how to access the film if they are unable to attend the prior screening. Participants are encouraged to read the text and watch the film. A guide to engaging with the material will be sent prior.

Everyone welcome. Space is limited, so registration is essential.