Doug Aitken

Not since Vanilla Ice urged us to “Stop, collaborate and listen” has frozen water been the subject of such concentrated attention. L.A.-based artist Doug Aitken’s innovative video thaw (2001), part of his series “new ocean,” devotes three screens to a melting Alaskan glacial mass.

Aitken takes full advantage of this tripartite structure: At various points in the four-minute piece, the triptych of screens may form a panoramic view of snow and rock or present different scenes, with the two outer screens often appearing as mirror images of each other. From time to time, Aitken flips all of the footage upside down, disorienting the viewer.

thaw’s mesmerizing depictions of hairline cracks in crystalline ice, smooth tunnels, giant crevasses, and water that is neither liquid nor solid are complemented perfectly by its soundtrack. Aitken melded sounds gathered on location with Radiohead-like electronic beeps and bloops that dissolve into loud static and fuzz as the camera speeds up. Such moments of tension prevent viewers from getting too comfortable as they are soothed by the sound of rushing water and thaw’s cool blue, gray and white vistas. The smash and thud of plummeting ice chunks periodically reminds us how violent nature can be.

The wall text claims thaw is a commentary on art’s transition from still images to filmic ones, but this highfalutin explanation seems inadequate. As mighty walls of snow and ice dribble away beneath the bright Arctic sun, you can’t help thinking of the SUV drivers far offscreen.