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Vito Acconci (b. 1940) Back to Vito Acconci in UbuWeb Film Theme Song 33 minutes, 1973 The dynamic tension between 'I and you,' artist and viewer, is perhaps most brilliantly realised in 'Theme Song', a pivotal work. Here he uses the close-up to extraordinary effect, constructing a charged confrontation with the viewer. Acconci is 'face to face,' his head looming onto the screen. With a disquieting intimacy, he shifts between vulnerability and manipulation, candour and seduction, in a pop song driven 'come-on' to the viewer. While Acconci's monologues often refer specifically to women, 'Theme Song' is effective precisely because the 'you' here is un-gendered, non-specific, universal: 'You could be anybody out there.' Describing a relationship of trust and deception, Acconci ultimately acknowledges that the notion of being 'face to face' is, after all, a rather pathetic illusion: 'I can feel your body right next to me...I know I'm only kidding myself...You're not here' Rent or purchase Theme Song from Film and Video Umbrella RESOURCES: Vito Acconci in UbuWeb Sound Vito Acconci in the UbuWeb Anthology of Conceptual Writing UbuWeb Film | UbuWeb PennSound | GreyLodge | Artmob | EPC | WFMU