Matthew Buckingham's film and video works re-imagined the lives of pioneering figures.
Mary Wollstonecraft appeared as a ghost whose legacy is unsettled. Objects within the gallery space brought you closer to the action and her responses to the 21st-century. Matthew Buckingham’s re-investigation of history addressed present-day realities such as the impact of globalisation and colonialism. The Spirit and the Letter portrayed 18th-century writer and social reformer Mary Wollstonecraft, using her own words and work so that she appears to reflect on past conditions from the 21st-century. It encouraged us to consider what elements and social dynamics have changed and the way in which her legacy has and continues to be contested.
Everything I Need imagined the thoughts of psychologist and radical feminist Charlotte Wolff on her return to Germany following exile in the 1930s. In False Future, Buckingham re-staged a film by Louis Le Prince, an early pioneer of cinematography. A site specific installation Specularia engaged with the history of Camden Art Centre – its architecture and changing function throughout time.
