Tempio di Ercole, 1976
Exhibition view of Françoise Sullivan. The 1970s, 2021, Galerie de l’UQAM
Photo: Paul Litherland




4 of 13 black and white digital prints produced in 2021 from the original negatives
Collection of the artist
Excerpt from a guided tour of the exhibition Françoise Sullivan. The 1970s with Françoise Sullivan and Louise Déry, 2021, Galerie de l’UQAM
Tempio di Ercole, 1976
13 black and white digital prints produced in 2021 from the original negatives
58.3 × 403.2 cm
Frieze and performance concept: Françoise Sullivan
Photo: David Moore
Collection of the artist
Artwork and documentation
This impressive panoramic photomontage consists of thirteen digital prints made from the original negatives assembled by the artist in 2021. Coming upon the Temple of Hercules during a stay in Rome in the summer of 1976, Françoise Sullivan engaged in an energetic race in the peristyle of this small circular temple dedicated to the god Hercules Olivarius. Her performance was captured on camera by her accomplice at the time, David Moore. Circularity, rapid breathing and strength characterize the action, and the photographic frieze, designed to convey one uninterrupted movement, is structured by the rhythm of the columns. The photomontage, by the joins of its thirteen images intentionally misaligned, shows traces of manipulation, cutting and gluing. The overall impression of the frieze is one of movement, as if a reel of film were unrolling before our eyes as we make our way along the work.