Layla Curtis

Traceurs: to trace, to draw, to go fast is a collection of twenty black and white films, created using a thermal imaging camera, which capture a series of moments in which traceurs (practitioners of parkour) come into physical contact with the urban fabric. The camera, which sees the world in terms of temperature rather than light, makes visible the glowing white heat residue transferred from hands, fingers and feet onto the surfaces that the traceurs nimbly leap onto, run across and spring off. 

The films are screened simultaneously as part of a multi channel video installation.

Related publication: Traceurs: to trace, to draw, to go fast with essay by Richard Grayson

Commissioned by Westminster City Council.

Every minute for one year, the images transmitted from two webcams, each at opposite ends of the planet, were captured and compiled to create the timelapse work 78 Degrees North, 67 Degrees South.

Beginning on the southern hemisphere's longest day (and subsequently the northern hemisphere's shortest day), the two videos are viewed side by side tracking the contrasting seasons and extreme weather conditions at these diametrically opposite locations.

Real time images of the Antarctic landscape, transmitted from a live webcam installed at an Antarctic research station 67 degrees south, are projected onto a miniature screen inside a snowdome in the work 67 Degrees South.

67 Degrees South was commissioned by National Glass Centre on the occasion of the 2007 Sunderland Winter Festival.

Sky Drawings (Night, Day) is a two channel video projection depicting the traces left by aeroplanes as they cross a particular section of sky. One projection shows lingering vapour trails gradually obliterating a blue cloudless sky, while the other shows a collection of red, green and white blinking aeroplane lights against the night's sky. Projected simultaneously onto a double sided screen the night and day footage cannot be seen at the same time.

Related publication: A Congregation of Vapours, with essay by David Barrett

Sky Drawings (Night, Day) was commissioned by VIVID and supported by the Henry Moore Foundation.

Crevasse is a two channel video installation depicting a gradual assent out of an Antarctic crevasse. The assent, captured simultaneously on two cameras (one downward facing and one upward facing), is replayed in the gallery space - the footage from the downward facing camera is projected onto the floor while the footage from the upward facing camera is projected onto ceiling.

Horizon (Port, Starboard) is a two channel video projection depicting the moving horizon line filmed simultaneously from opposite sides of an ice-strengthened ship. As the ship propels forward and rolls from port to starboard the horizon rises and falls within the two window frames – one horizon falling exactly as the other rises.