Gravity & Radiance Film Still #1 - Umi Ishihara

Gravity and Radiance Still
14 x 7.88 In, Gloss
C-Type print
2025

Limited edition of 20 / First 5 editions signed

As part of the first exhibition at STANDALONE, this film still is taken from artist Umi ishihara's 2021 film Gravity and Radiance (30 min).

Gravity and Radiance is an experimental documentary that follows a close-knit community in small Baptist church in Kitakyushu, Japan as they stage a ‘Passion Play’ interwoven with interviews in which they reflect on the redemption they have found in their own lives. Hailing from difficult backgrounds of crime, homelessness, abuse, and depression, all the parishioners have found salvation through an NPO.

Inspired by French philosopher Simone Weil’s Gravity and Grace, the documentary explores themes of suffering and forgiveness, sorrow and joy. Ishihara initially lived in a room atop the church for a few weeks in 2017 on the invitation of a friend. Moved by the experience, she relocated to the area and became more involved in the group. The result is an intimate record of her time spent living among this unique community, filmed over a two-year period between 2020 and 2022. 

Artist Information: 

London-based artist & filmmaker from Japan, Ishihara creates experimental narrative films that weave together personal memories with broader social issues. Her work delves deep into themes of politics, community, and the sense of alienation that often permeates various social classes. She frequently collaborates with non-professional actors—local residents and people from her immediate surroundings. Her work has been shown in museums and film festivals worldwide, including The Center Pompidou, ICA London, BFI Southbank, South London Gallery, International Film Festival Rotterdam, CPH:DOC, The National Museum of Art Osaka, Fukuoka Art Museum and Tokyo Photographic Art Museum. She was selected by Bloomberg New Contemporaries 2019 and Awarded GQ Global Creativity Awards 2024