Collection Playlist: Flaming Creatures and Sex Fish

Flaming Creatures by Jack Smith
Costumed characters cavort on an opulent set; men apply lipstick as foreplay to an orgy interrupted by a blond vampire. Smith’s transgressive parody of classical Hollywood introduced future Warhol stars Francis Francine and Mario Montez. Originally intended as a comedy, Flaming Creatures became a notorious underground classic, banned in 22 US states and several countries soon after its release. US, 1963, black and white, 16 mm, 45 min. Contains explicit sexual content including fetishized sexual violence.

“This movie will be called pornographic, degenerate, homosexual, trite, disgusting, etc., home movie. It is all that, and it is so much more than that..” —Jonas Mekas, Village Voice, 1963

Sex Fish by Shu Lea Cheang
A euphoric lesbian sex video features a group of women in a frenzy of erotic scenes with poetry, slowly dripping water, fancy goldfish, and an ecstatic score by Sheila Chandra. Experimenting with pro-sex feminist media practices and pornography, Sex Fish was made as a collaboration known as E. T. Baby Mania with Jane Castle, Cheryl Dunye, Alexandra Juhasz, Sikay Tang, and Ela Troyano. US, 1993, color and black and white, video, 6 min. Contains explicit sexual content.

“Sex Fish was made with friends and lovers, intimate sexing bodies flowing in a sexing fishy vibe.” —Shu Lea Cheang

Jack Smith was born in Ohio and arrived in New York in 1953. He became a key figure in the cultural history of Downtown New York film, performance, and art. He appeared in his own films as well as those of Andy Warhol and Ken Jacobs. Although best known for his contributions to underground cinema, Smith’s influence extends across performance art, photography, and experimental theater.

Shu Lea Cheang lived and worked in New York in the 1980s and ’90s, relocating to Europe in 2000. Active in experimental video and net art since the early 1980s, her work deals with the techno-body and queer politics. Following her first feature Fresh Kill (shown at the 1995 Whitney Biennale), she was commissioned by the Walker to create a cybernetic bowling alley installation.

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