Thursday, June 25, 2026 at 8:00 PM to 10:30 PM
2220 Arts + Archives, Los Angeles
Lightstruck presents *Jordan Belson: Knowledge Beyond Words pgm I.* On June 25 and July 9, Lightstruck is honored to present two evenings devoted to one of cinema's unparalleled visionaries – Jordan Belson – an artist and filmmaker whose singular body of work has justifiably been the subject of devoted contemplation and ecstatic appreciation for over six decades. Belson's films defy concrete description, which is part of their deep and personal appeal, hinting as they do at "a knowledge that is beyond words", as Belson once told writer and curator Raymond Foye (to whom we are greatly indebted for being able to present these programs). While his earliest films embodied more familiar aspects of mid-century non-objective visual art, the early 1960s marked a radical shift into intensely mystical and elusive imagery – achieved largely through Belson's own remarkable photographic techniques – to give miraculous form to the innermost regions of imagination and consciousness. For our first program, Lightstruck is excited and honored to welcome independent curator and scholar Raymond Foye in person for an illustrated talk on Belson and his art, informed in part by their many conversations over the last five years of Belson’s life. In addition to organizing exhibits of Belson’s paintings and drawings, Foye has been working with the Belson estate to preserve and restore his films photochemically as well as digitally. Following the presentation, we are thrilled to project an exhilarating selection of seven beautiful new 16mm prints, courtesy of the Belson estate and Raymond Foye. Following the introductory illustrated lecture, the films screening in this program are: Caravan (1952), Allures (1961), Phenomena (1965), Samadhi (1967), World (1970), Meditation (1971), and Chakra (1972). Huge thanks to (and all films courtesy of) Raymond Foye and the Jordan Belson estate. Notes and program by Zena Grey and Mark Toscano.