STEFAN RÖMER IN CONVERSATION WITH WESLEY HILL
In April 2006 the German film-maker Stefan Römer visited Australia at the invitation of David Pestorius to participate in the Heimo Zobernig exhibition project that Pestorius organised for Artspace, Sydney. Römer’s participation in the Zobernig project involved the screening and discussion of his new feature-length documentary Conceptual Paradise: There is a Place for Sophistication. Similar events involving Römer were also hosted by the Institute of Modern Art and the University of Melbourne. Conceptual Paradise explores the complex history and evolving legacy of the Conceptual Art movement through discussions with many prominent living artists, including Zobernig, as well as critics and promoters of the evolving discourses around conceptual practice. Using the film-essay style of documentary making, Conceptual Paradise revealed the major concerns and paradoxes of the Conceptual Art movement as well as highlighting important issues about the nature of the documentary genre itself. As an historical document alone the film is significant to contemporary art culture as it documents the thoughts and physical presence of over fifty artists, many of whom, such as Ed Ruscha, Lawrence Weiner, Dan Graham, Joseph Kosuth, Daniel Buren, Vito Acconci and John Baldessari, have had an immense influence on contemporary art and the development of post 1960’s art theory. As an artwork, Römer’s editing and scene constructions had an air of play and self awareness that made for more compelling viewing than that of a linear and chronological account of the subject. Through the wonders of email, Stefan Römer kindly agreed to answer my questions as he travelled to Sydney and Melbourne to promote and screen the film.
Wes Hill: Firstly, what appealed to me about the documentary was that it portrayed... The rest of this article is available to subscribers of Eyeline