"Bolex Artists" : Bolex cameras, Amateurism, and New York avant-garde film
Book chapter
Is part of
Exposing the film apparatus : the film archive as a research laboratory ; pp. 153-162.Publisher(s)
Amsterdam University PressAbstract(s)
Designed by Jacques Bogopolsky in 1928, the Bolex camera was first commercialized
by the Swiss firm Paillard-Bolex in 1935. The model shown here is an H16, the firm’s
emblematic 16mm model, from 1952. The camera measures 8.5 x 5.9 x 2.3 inches
(21.6 x 15 x 7.6 cm) and weighs about 12 lbs (5.5 kg). Known for its robustness and
versatility, the Bolex uses a spring motor mechanism, is equipped with a reflex viewfinder, and allows for a large range of speed variations—capturing from 8 to 64 frames
per second—as well as single frame exposures. Bolex cameras were used by American avant-garde and documentary filmmakers
from the late 1940s to the 1970s and beyond, alongside a wide array of users, which
included television reporters, people in the educational and business worlds, and
non-professionals. This chapter explores the role of the Bolex in the history and aesthetics of avant-garde cinema and its American “renaissance” after World War II. The
role that substandard formats played in the construction of an artistic ethos based
on the figure of the amateur is also examined, exemplifying technology’s place and
meaning in the culture of the time.
Note(s)
Diffusé avec l’accord des Éditions Amsterdam University Press, détentrices des droits d’auteur sur ce texte.This document disseminated on Papyrus is the exclusive property of the copyright holders and is protected by the Copyright Act (R.S.C. 1985, c. C-42). It may be used for fair dealing and non-commercial purposes, for private study or research, criticism and review as provided by law. For any other use, written authorization from the copyright holders is required.