Bita Razavi

Bita Razavi focuses on liminal states between physical and digital experiences, between artificial and natural spaces in The Dog Days Will Be Over Soon.

Razavi, who is not a gamer, was drawn to environmental backdrops found in hunting games.

Bita Razavi (Finland/Estonia, born 1983), Gameplay video filmed in *Far Cry 5* from the series *The Dog Days Will Soon Be Over*, 2019, silent; HD video, 16:9, 5 minutes (loop) on gilt-framed screen. Courtesy of the artist. © Bita Razavi

Razavi created this body of work from video games by taking screenshots and repurposing the scenes into new videos. In The Dog Days Will Be Over Soon, Razavi pauses the frame— uninterested in the sport of hunting—and explores the nature-inspired screenscapes of forested lands and coastal shores found in Canada.

This video presents an array of wildlife—deer, bears, birds, insects—in their natural environment. Deer emerge from the forest and pause at the water’s edge as if they register the presence of the viewer, and then retreat into the wild. The irony of Razavi’s video is that they flip the script on the violent game—the wildlife are no longer hunted by the player on the opposite side of the screen. Nature prevails, or at least the animals survive in their digital world. The use of a gilded frame further elevates the beautiful computer-generated scenes to classical landscape paintings.

Bita Razavi (Finland/Estonia, born 1983), Gameplay video filmed in *The Hunter: Call of the Wild f*rom the series *The Dog Days Will Soon Be Over*, 2019, sound; HD video, 16:9, 5 minutes 39 seconds (loop), musical score by Svetlana Maraš. Courtesy of the artist. © Bita Razavi

The artist records the game footage repeatedly under different light and weather conditions. Here, a computer graphic HUD, or heads-up display, with status icons and a gauge, are cues for the onlooker that it is not live footage. A musical score by Svetlana Maraš accompanies the manufactured weather as it changes from rain to warm sun over the course of almost six minutes. For Razavi, the video takes “an impressionist approach towards the ephemeral nature of light and its effect on colors.”

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Guest UserFebruary 11, 20222022 nat artist

Bita Razavi

Bita Razavi focuses on liminal states between physical and digital experiences, between artificial and natural spaces in The Dog Days Will Be Over Soon.

Razavi, who is not a gamer, was drawn to environmental backdrops found in hunting games.

Explore more artworks from North Atlantic Triennial

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Bita Razavi

Bita Razavi focuses on liminal states between physical and digital experiences, between artificial and natural spaces in The Dog Days Will Be Over Soon.

Razavi, who is not a gamer, was drawn to environmental backdrops found in hunting games.

Explore more artworks from North Atlantic Triennial

VISITEXHIBITIONSPROGRAMS & EVENTSPMA FILMSJOIN & GIVELearnWINSLOW HOMER STUDIO

Art For AllSustainabilityABOUT THE PMADonate OnlinePRESS ROOMANNUAL REPORTSPMA Recommends

Facility RentalBOARD OF TRUSTEEScareersDIRECTORYIMAGE SERVICESTerms of UseContact US

LOG IN: Staff | Docents | Trustees

VISIT
EXHIBITIONS
PROGRAMS & EVENTS
PMA FILMS
JOIN & GIVE
Learn
WINSLOW HOMER STUDIO

Art For All
Sustainability
ABOUT THE PMA
Donate Online
PRESS ROOM
ANNUAL REPORTS
PMA Recommends

Facility Rental
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
careers
DIRECTORY
IMAGE SERVICES
Terms of Use
Contact US