The Shadow Traps
In October 1888, the French inventor Louis Le Prince shot what many people now believe to be the world’s first films. On the 16th September 1890, and just before he was due to sail to New York to demonstrate his films in public for the first time, Le Prince boarded the Dijon to Paris train and was never seen again.The Shadow Traps podcasts will tell the story of Le Prince, his life, his films and his mysterious disappearance. It is a mystery story, an exploration of invention and obsession and a love letter to film. To find out more and support this podcast, go to www.patreon.com/theshadowtraps
The Shadow Traps
Episode 16. The Purpose of Film as Revealed in a Discussion About Wallpaper
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Irfan Shah
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Season 1
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Episode 16
We use our information on the Le Princes' experiences with the Lincrusta-Walton wallpaper process to try and help us understand what their attitudes to film might have been. How could this work? Because the nineteenth century saw a change in the way Art was produced and experienced and it started with the most unassuming of forms. The decorative arts underwent a transformation because of the industrial processes that became available and as a result of the swathes of mechanically reproduced pieces that appeared, there was a debate about whether such products could ever be art, or could possess real beauty. Where the Le Princes stood on this, could provide us with more clues as to who they were as people.