Spirals (1970), a mesmerizing short film by Joyce Chopra, was commissioned for The Met's first mobile exhibition, "Eye Opener: The Spiral Show." Planned as part of the Museum's centennial celebration, the show—housed on a flatbed truck, under an inflatable dome—traveled to various neighborhoods throughout New York City. It explored how the spiral form recurs across the natural world, art, household objects, and the cosmos, from galaxies and whirlpools to ram's horns, slinkies, staircases, telephone cords, and pottery wheels. This exercise in association served as a kind of thesis for the exhibition, modeling a way of seeing that used a simple form to reveal profound and mundane connections. Originally set to a Wendy Carlos track, it is presented here with a new score by silent-film accompanist Ben Model.
Read more about Ben Model's new score.
