installation: Bill Viola

second attempt to see the Bill Viola installation 'martyrs' in St Pauls was more successful.

At the back of the cathedral above Christopher Wrens tomb are 4 videos on a 7 minute long loop showing 4 martyrs succumbing to 4 elements earth wind fire and water.Different ages, genders all passive and beatific in their trials. The figures are lit in manner consistent in Violas work: spotlight, black background adding contrast and concentrating the gaze.

Viola himself does not adhere to a particular faith and has produced a mesmerising yet uncomfortable piece that will resonate with visitors from any background.

Watching in a troubled time of beheadings, deliberate immolations and migrants drowning, it's impossible to view this piece without these references coming to mind. From an artistic viewpoint, the speed, portrait presentation and silence of the piece all add to it's contemplative qualities. Using reversed footage, lighting and special effects to his advantage Viola has tinkered with reality in a subtle non-showy fashion. On the downside trying to work out how the footage was filmed was a distraction to the piece. It's an illusion thank goodness, there's too much of real life martyring going on, which is maybe what makes the viewing more unsettling, recreating a reality that for others doesn't end when someone shouts "cut" is a gruesome and sobering thought.