VHS Valentines
2024
Photos by Mario Gallucci and Caitlin Taber
This is an unfolding artistic exploration of the allure of the VHS tape in the digital era and the people that love them, most especially Kevin, my partner of 19 years, who is hoarding 2,000 tapes in our basement.
The project began as an attempt to better understand the peculiarities of someone I thought I already fully knew, and it later became a retraining in how to look and listen, how to show up for another human, and a lesson in the way things flourish with intention.
As I began to share this work with the public through a gallery exhibition, a series of screenings co-hosted with Kevin, and 1-on-1 conversations, it evolved further. The VHS tapes brought up predictable subjects like pop culture and aesthetics, memory, and the objects we carry with us through life; as well as the less obvious topics of family conflict, the usefulness of partnership (or lack thereof), the meaning of time, security, privilege, and our collective impending demise.
This project was originally my MFA Thesis work shown at Expensify Gallery in May 2024 under the name Sometimes the most beautiful thing is the thing standing right in front of you. It has since continued to live and create new ripples.
Be part of the next iteration of this project in Astoria, OR.
(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life: VHS Valentines
An Installation and Event Series
September 28 - October 12, 2024
AVALON, 1154 Commercial Street
Astoria, OR
Opening Event Saturday, September 28, 2024, 7pm - late
Full List of Events
Conversations by appointment: Saturday, September 28, 3-5pm
Make a 30-minute appointment to talk with Rebecca (sign up here)
**Opening Night: Saturday, September 28, doors open at 7**
7:30-11pm | Portland- and Astoria-based musicians respond to VHS footage in a wild jam sesh. Musicians include: Eugenie Jolivett Fontana, Becky Miller, Kevin Noonan, Kiah Rogers, Flannery Smith, Todd Umhoefer
9pm-midnight | Screening: 1994 MTV Video Music AwardsVHS Excavation and Collaborative Screening: Sunday, September 29, 10am-1pm
Let’s eat pancakes and dig through a collection of VHS tapes together; we can project the clips onto a screen directly from the VCR!
Screening: Thursday, October 3, 7-9:30pm
Selections from the home movies of strangers (1948-82) and Fatal Attraction taped off TV with commercials (1989)
Screening: Saturday, October 5, 7-10pm
R.I.P. Kurt Cobain MTV News Report (1994) + MTV Unplugged: Nirvana (1993) - all taped off TV with commercials
VHS Show & Tell and Collaborative Screening: Thursday, October 10, 7-9pm
Bring your own tape to share with the best 5-10 minute clip queued up; be prepared to say why it’s significant to you
Saturday, October 12: Conversations by appointment: 3-5pm
Make a 30-minute appointment to talk with Rebecca (sign up here)
Closing Screening: Saturday, October 12, 7-10pm
Dracula & Frankenstein mash-up with 1980s commercials
I made 20 clamshell boxes for the VHS tapes in Kevin’s collection.
This video shows a part of that process.
