Meet the On-line Artist // Alexandra Tahereh Kaucher
Alexandra’s work grapples with the notion of cultural identity as a second generation Iranian immigrant, growing up in America. Drawing from her mother’s recollection and a mix of archival and contemporary media, she navigates the complexities of heritage, globalization and the space between cultures. Through media collage, Kaucher examines themes such as feminism, consumerism, and social standards in western culture, contrasting with her persian roots.
Can you tell us a bit about yourself? Specifically, we’d love to know about your background.
I am Alexandra Tahereh Kaucher, I am a director currently based in Brooklyn, I am a second-generation Iranian immigrant who grew up in the U.S. My film work and video installations primarily grapple my cultural identity, feminism, and consumerism. I play Persian tar and do music too. :)
How would you describe your artistic practice?
I consider myself an experimental filmmaker. I make documentaries and video art. I love working with media collage pulled from both archival and contemporary sources, mixed in with my own photography. I am extremely inspired by Bruce Conner, Chris Marker, Shirin Neshat, and Harmony Korine.
I am very drawn to repetition, I think that is very influenced by my love for Persian art, there’s a lot of repetition in the carpets, architecture, and handiworks. Repetition gives a sense of harmony and order amongst the chaos.
What is your methodology or process for creating a new project?
I like to have everything out in front of me so I can place it like in a collage, I don’t always work linearly. Working linearly is stifling for me. There is a kind of push and pull with editing that I love where you are informing it and it informs you, it feels like another form of sculpting.
I sometimes discover one clip and then I want to explore how I can repurpose that idea or distill it into something new. I have always been drawn to collage, when I was a little girl I used to cut up my mom’s magazines and make little collages– which my mom surely kept. I am in active pre-production of my project which has involved conducting interviews to see what story elements I want to use for the final film. I want the story of this film to emerge collaboratively with the subjects because it’s ultimately their story and I want to be true to them.
What’s the project you’re working on during GlogauAIR’s residency?
During my residency at GlogauAIR, I have been working on my latest film, Never Move Backwards, an intimate portrait of an all-female parkour troupe in Iran.
