ICA is closed from the 30 May – 3 June inclusive.
A perennial and dynamic presence in American avant-garde circles from New York to Los Angeles, Amy Halpern (1953–2022) remained dedicated to probing cinema’s special capacity to heighten perception and reveal ephemeral states of consciousness. Though her films may appear dream-like, they are designed, as she once put it, to render what it is like to be truly lucid and awake, experiencing reality in its fullness. Informed by a profound awareness of the world around her, Halpern’s rich, associative films invite us to savour the everyday in their devoted study of gesture, light, ritual, movement, and the mesmerising intensity of the gaze. Ranging from avant-garde portraiture to rapturous surveys of animal and substances engaged in constant cycles of change, Halpern’s empathetic, non-anthropocentric cinema also exudes a fierce commitment to anti-racism and a keen distrust of authority, instead invoking solidarity and individual and collective transformation.
Falling Lessons: The Films of Amy Halpern is curated by Sophia Satchell-Baeza and presented in association with Sisters of the Extreme.
Access to the View (Amy Halpern / 2000 / USA / 2’ / 16mm / sound)
Cheshire Cat (Amy Halpern / 2012 / USA / 5’ / 16mm / sound)
Ginko Yellow (Amy Halpern / 2022 / USA / 5’ / 16mm / silent)
Hula (Amy Halpern / 2022 / USA / 6’ / 16mm / sound)
Jane Looking (Amy Halpern / 2020 / USA / 2’ / 16mm / silent)
#27 (Amy Halpern / 2019 / USA / 3’ / 16mm / silent)
My Dear Evaporant (Amy Halpern / 2022 / USA / 5’ / 16mm / silent)
Chabrot (Amy Halpern / 2022 / USA / 3’ / 16mm / sound)
Three Minute Hells (Amy Halpern / 2012 / USA / 14’ / 16mm / English spoken)
Unowned Luxuries #3 (Amy Halpern / 2020 / USA / 2’ / 16mm /silent)
Elixir (Amy Halpern / 2012 / USA / 7’ / 16mm / silent)
Cigarette Burn (Amy Halpern / 1978 / USA / 7’ / 16mm / English spoken)
Emit a Beam, See a Light (Amy Halpern / 2022 / USA / 3’ / 16mm / English spoken)
Vezalay Curtains (Amy Halpern / 2019 / USA / 4’ / Digital / sound)
With an introduction by Sophia Satchell-Baeza.
Falling Lessons: The Films of Amy Halpern is curated by Sophia Satchell-Baeza and presented in association with Sisters of the Extreme.
Access to the View (Amy Halpern / 2000 / USA / 2’ / 16mm / sound)
Cheshire Cat (Amy Halpern / 2012 / USA / 5’ / 16mm / sound)
Ginko Yellow (Amy Halpern / 2022 / USA / 5’ / 16mm / silent)
Hula (Amy Halpern / 2022 / USA / 6’ / 16mm / sound)
Jane Looking (Amy Halpern / 2020 / USA / 2’ / 16mm / silent)
#27 (Amy Halpern / 2019 / USA / 3’ / 16mm / silent)
My Dear Evaporant (Amy Halpern / 2022 / USA / 5’ / 16mm / silent)
Chabrot (Amy Halpern / 2022 / USA / 3’ / 16mm / sound)
Three Minute Hells (Amy Halpern / 2012 / USA / 14’ / 16mm / English spoken)
Unowned Luxuries #3 (Amy Halpern / 2020 / USA / 2’ / 16mm /silent)
Elixir (Amy Halpern / 2012 / USA / 7’ / 16mm / silent)
Cigarette Burn (Amy Halpern / 1978 / USA / 7’ / 16mm / English spoken)
Emit a Beam, See a Light (Amy Halpern / 2022 / USA / 3’ / 16mm / English spoken)
Vezalay Curtains (Amy Halpern / 2019 / USA / 4’ / Digital / sound)
With an introduction by Sophia Satchell-Baeza.
08:30 pm
Fri, 26 Apr 2024
Cinema 1
Ticket information
- All tickets that do not require ID (full price, disabled, income support) can be printed at home or stored in email
- For aged-based concession tickets (under 25, student and pensioner) please bring relevant ID to collect at the front desk before the event.
Access information
Cinema 1
- Both our Cinemas have step free access from The Mall and are accessible by ramp
- We have 1 wheelchair allocated space with a seat for a companion
- All seats are hard back, have a crushed velvet feel and they do not recline
- These are our seat size dimensions: W 42 x D 45 x H 52
- Arm rest either side of the seat dimensions: L 27 x W 7 x H 20
for the following requirements:
- We have unassigned seating. If you require a specific seat, please reserve this in advance
- Free for visitors where ticket prices are a barrier, please email
Red Members gain unlimited access to all exhibitions, films, talks, performances and Cinema 3.
Join today for £20/month.
no. 236848.