For the International 2002, Lewis proposed two short films that would each address the question of the pictorial condition in film, referencing some of the very simple (but semiotically-complex) films of the Lumiere brothers. Owing much to the tradition of nineteenth-century Romanticism as expressed in paintings by Caspar David Friedrich, Arnold Bocklin and others, both films appear to document a landscape beyond real time and place. They operate as simultaneous advertisements for tourism and the sublime. As such, they use the idea of arrival and departure as a motif – one reflective of Liverpool’s history. Algonquin Park, September (2001) ‘It went very well and I was very pleased with the crew, the location, the weather conditions, and so on. Everything happened as planned and we couldn't have asked for more ideal conditions (beautiful steam rising off the lake and so on).’ Email correspondence, 14 September 2001, Mark Lewis Shot on Super 35mm with 1:2:35 ratio (simulating cinemascope), Algonquin Park, September consists of a single still shot of a lake in North Ontario. Over time, an island emerges slowly from the mist and the light becomes gloriously seductive and filmic. A lone boat traces its way across the surface of the lake, from the right to the left of the screen. Nothing appears to happen. The film stops. Two minutes and forty-six seconds have elapsed. The sudden and unexpected ending recalls the Lumiére brothers’ film A Boat Leaving the Harbour (c.1896).

Project Credits Courtesy the artist, Patrick Painter Inc., Los Angeles and Galerie Cent-8, Paris Commissioned by Liverpool Biennial of Contemporary Art International Exhibition 2002 in association with FACT (Foundation for Art & Creative Technology) Supported by the Canadian High Commission. With thanks to: Patrick Painter Inc., Los Angeles and Galerie Cent-8, Paris. Algonquin Park, September Production: Cast: Richard Payne, Adam Traynor; Director of Photography: Brian Pearson; 1st Assistant Camera: Paul Begin; Stunt Coordinato: Richard Collier, Havoc Stunt Services International; Lifeguards: Mary Ellen Peace-Hall, Morven Barnes; Production Assistant: Malcolm Fraser; Producers: Fraser Robinson and Stacey DeWolfe.