Rise (M. Brzezinski) can be seen as an extrapolation of the quotidian inherently engendered with a relational and political identity which lies beneath the subterfuge of banality. These strata of ambiguity dissolve through the lens as routine is transformed to a scene of heroism. The general condition of the heroic is the product of an event, the occurrence of which is a result of a series of actions incorporating the perception of risk. The event itself is a product of chance and the reactions which unfold with that same sense of the arbitrary. The sensation of temporality in the event is central to the recognition of the event’s significance and a proportionality can be exacted in most cases as a one to one ratio of the increase of time (distance from the event) and the attribution of importance. The passage of time plays an important role in the video which demonstrates this ‘heroic equivalence’. As the elongation of the frames which contributes a heightened sense of drama and exposes nationalistic symbols as a shear conflagration of form.

Only post facto is the event deemed heroic and subsequently creates a new narrative where the application of a cultural, ethnic and territorial reading come into play, usually incorporating the nation-state. One can see patriotism as an extension of this heroic condition as a symptom as well as a protective instinct for the preservation of the nation-state. The continual narrative of the nation-state necessitates heroism as a symbol of sacrifice to confound the larger loss of liberty identified by Rousseau when one is beholden to an authority.

Jason Waite