THE LOTTERY OF THE SEA

Allan Sekula | USA 2006 | 179 m in.

Format: Beta SP
Material: MiniDV
Original language: English, Spanish, Galicien, Catalan

Script: Allan Sekula
Camera: Allan Sekula
Editing: Elizabeth Hesik
Sound: Allan Sekula, Carles Guerra, Oralia Sendón u.a.


Production: Allan Sekula

„The Lottery of the Sea takes ist title from Adam Smith, who, in his famous Inquiry into the Wealth of Nations (1776) compared the life of the seafarer to gambling. Thus notions of risk were introduced by Smith through an allegory of the sea’s dangers, especially for those who did the hard work, and then, secondarily, for those who invested in ships and goods. The film asks, is there a relationship  between the most frightening and terrifying concept, in economics,that of risk and the category of the sublime in aesthetics? We know that the sea is a primordial source of sublimity, especially in the 18th century. This film is an offbeat diary extending from the presumably ‘innocent’ summer of 2001 through to the current ‘war on terror’ all by the way of a meandering, essayistic voyage from seaport to seaport, waterfront to waterfront, coast to coast.” - Allan Sekula

Allan Sekula, born in 1951 in Eire, Pennsylvania. From 1968 until 1972 he studied at the University of California in San Diego. He teaches at the California Institute of Arts in Los Angeles and works in the fields of photography, installation and film. Sekula is one of the most acknowledged contemporary photographers. His works are part of many distinguished art collections as well as exhibitions worldwide, such as Documenta11 (2002) and 12 (2007) and the Biennale in Venice.

Films: Tsukiji 2002 | Gala 2005 | The Lottery of the Sea 2006

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