The Morphology of Desire

In this lush, pulsating trash-symphony, Robert Arnold combines digital and film processes to morph an eternal series of romance novel covers. The audio track throbs with the heartbeat of the cover girls as the film plays out the complex codes of Mills and Boon style desire. The transitions from cover to cover heighten the presence of the gaze as the heroine pivots and turns, knowing she is watched by the predator male (always lurking behind her) and the paperback consumer. The finished work, with its digitally morphed transitions, was filmed frame by frame with a Bolex camera, for the final translation back to 16mm.