Hello again Frameworkers,

The speed and dexterity of this community never ceases to amaze. I have the 
answer. I was wrong about the work - it was Synchronousoundtracks (1973-1974) a 
different multi-projector loop work involving loops of about 30 minutes in 
duration (see attached). As Sharits put it, “I guess I underestimated the total 
possible variational relations of each frame of screen image A to B to C and B 
to A to C and C to B to A: i.e., I guessed at one month…but what is actually 
possible is, unless my math is off, 7,784,722 days 5 hours. Or (unless MY math 
is off) over 21,000 years. 

Many thanks to Arindam Sen for coming to the rescue with lightning speed. 

All best,
Jonathan

> 
>> On Jan 29, 2023, at 10:39 AM, Jonathan Walley <[email protected]> wrote:
>> 
>> Hello Frameworkers,
>> 
>> This might be a lot to ask, but here goes. I’m trying to hunt down a 
>> factoid, which, while a mere jot of information, would be a big help to me 
>> as I finish an article with a deadline looming. I have catastrophically 
>> misplaced my beloved copy of the Paul Sharits issue of Film Culture (1978, 
>> 65-66), which contains the treasure. In “Paul Sharits and the Critique of 
>> Illusionism: An Introduction,” Annette Michelson makes reference to Sharits’ 
>> calculation of how long it would take for one of his installations (I 
>> believe Shutter Interface) to run through every possible permutation of 
>> frame relations - that is, given the number of frames on each of the four 
>> reels running in loops, and the fact that the four projectors are not 
>> actually running in perfect sync (and the loops are not all the exact number 
>> of frames in length), how long would it take for every possible four-frame 
>> combination to be projected, thus effectively “ending” the piece (see 
>> attached image for clarification, I hope). 
>> 
>> To make this even trickier, the reference might be in a footnote. Michelson 
>> refers to a letter from Sharits that does the math, and comes to the 
>> conclusion that the piece could, theoretically, run for some massive amount 
>> of time like millions of years or something. 
>> 
>> If there are no takers on this little research project, I completely 
>> understand. But if anyone has the Film Culture issue handy and feels like 
>> skimming it for me, I’d be forever in your debt. BTW, I cannot find a copy 
>> of the Michelson article anywhere online. I know it also appears in a 
>> catalog for Projected Images (Walker Art Centre, 1974), but I can’t find 
>> that online either.
>> 
>> Like I said, it’s a factoid, but it’s a key for me to unlock some other, 
>> bigger point, hence my mania to find it.
>> 
>> Thank you everyone,
>> Jonathan
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> <11A_FRI_Paul-Shartis-–-Shutter-Interface-1975-Achim-Hatzius-P4-600x400.jpg> 
>> 
>> Dr. Jonathan Walley
>> Associate Professor and Chair
>> Department of Cinema
>> Denison University
>> https://denison.edu/people/jonathan-walley 
>> <https://denison.edu/people/jonathan-walley>
>> 
>> 
>> 
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> 
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Dr. Jonathan Walley
Associate Professor and Chair
Department of Cinema
Denison University
https://denison.edu/people/jonathan-walley


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