From 12 April to 23 June, Cinema Palace in Brussels is hosting an exhibition with previously unpublished photographs from Jean Ber, set photographer on the film Golden Eighties (1986) by Chantal Akerman. The exhibition is organized in collaboration with the Chantal Akerman Foundation, which received the photographs in 2022. The exhibition complements the events organized at Cinematek and Bozar to celebrate the Belgian artist.
A singular work in her filmography, Golden Eighties is a musical comedy set in a recreation of the Toison d'Or galleries in Brussels in the 1980s. The sets, costumes and music are strongly influenced by the era, giving the whole thing an irresistible kitsch touch. And although the themes dear to the director, such as the weight of family and the impossibility of love, are present, the film's form and choral aspect are imbued with humor and lightness.
Chosen with the photographer and set in a scenography evoking the film's settings and sequences, the thirty-one photos on display reanimate an enchanted moment.
A press photographer, Jean Ber developed a taste for set photography in the 80s. The directors he worked for were singular authors such as Chantal Akerman, Pierre Zucca, Miklos Jancso, Jean-Louis Comolli and Frank Cassenti. In 1986, he took part in the launch of the Vu agency, focusing on portraiture for the arts and entertainment world. Since 2018, Jean Ber has teamed up with Véronique Donnat to edit and distribute his archives. In 2019, an exhibition, co-produced with the Nîmes Metropole Jazz Festival, was dedicated to jazz pianist and composer Michel Petrucciani.