Mono Men – Guardians of Time is a series of monumental videos about endlessness, boredom and dedication. With their videos Simone Mudde and Olivier van Breugel are visualising a small, everyday subject that examines a larger phenomenon. It raises questions about the meaning and perception of time and life at large.
A two screen preview of the multiscreen Mono Men video installation will be presented at the international photo festival BredaPhoto (NL) from 15 September – 30 October 2016.
About BredaPhoto
BredaPhoto is a biannual international photo festival that is organized since 2003 in the city center of Breda, the Netherlands. Offering a mixture of fresh talent and national and international headliners, the festival hosted photographers such as Martin Parr, Carl De Keyzer, Pieter Hugo, Bloomberg and Chanarin, Todd Hido and Yamamoto Masao in past editions. The program consists of lectures, workshops and numerous indoor and outside exhibitions throughout the city.
About Mono Men
The age of teinen, the Japanese word for retirement, is 62. However, retiring in Japan does not mean the same thing as in Europe. Teinen marks the end of ‘lifetime employment’ but not a complete withdrawal from the labour force. Many of them are continuing their career as security guards at construction sites.
Visualising a small, everyday subject that examines a larger phenomenon is an approach that Simone Mudde and Olivier van Breugel have previously applied to projects such as McHotel (2012) and Between Screens (2014). Mono Men (2016) is a series of monumental videos about endlessness and boredom. The dedication with which the guards perform their monotonous work raises questions about the meaning and perception of time.
© Olivier van Breugel
© Olivier van Breugel
© Olivier van Breugel
© Olivier van Breugel
© Olivier van Breugel
© Olivier van Breugel
© Olivier van Breugel
© Reinout van den Bergh