Stuart Croft: Eternal Return at Leeds Art Gallery
Maja Lorkowska, Exhibitions Editor
Leeds Art Gallery welcomes the work of Stuart Croft, a Leeds-born artist and filmmaker whose innovative approach to the moving image blurred the boundaries between the art gallery and cinema.
Eternal Return features four of Croft’s films and is the first display of his work since his untimely death in 2015. His work is celebrated by creating an immersive experience for visitors, encouraging us to get lost in the circular narratives and subversive treatment of traditional film genres.
Stuart Croft’s body of work includes 17 films, some of which were screened as part of the Leeds International Film Festival in November 2024, alongside this exhibition featuring his major works: Stag Without a Heart, Drive In, and Comma 39, as well as Remetior, shown for the very first time. The film’s sound design was finished posthumously by the artist’s friends and collaborators. You’ll encounter the bedroom of a gothic mansion to eavesdrop on a macabre fable, join an endless road trip, and find yourself in an abandoned film-set of a 1950s musical.
It’s clear to see that Croft was first and foremost a filmmaker, knowledgeable about the art of movies, their potential power and beauty. He utilised the gestures, images and production value of Hollywood film to push the boundaries of moving image and place it in a gallery.
His work is influenced by classic movies which can be sensed through his choice of visuals, as well as taking inspiration from experimental art film, materialised in his unconventional treatment of genres. The ‘road trip movie’, film noir and musicals all make an appearance in his oeuvre yet not in the ways that you may expect. Croft utilised narrative circularity too, allowing the viewer to start and end the film at any point.
Stuart Croft: Eternal Return is a treat for art and film lovers alike, adopting elements of both to create works that result in anything from the unexpected to the profound. Visit Leeds Art Gallery this winter to get lost in these works and celebrate the artist’s unique style.
Subtitled and audio-described screenings will be shown every Sunday throughout the exhibition from 11am- 3pm.
