I got the idea for Drummer when spending a weekend in a motel in summer 2002. I saw Regina playing drums after a karaoke night. As I sat within a meter from her in a cramped motel room, I saw emotions flying across her face. It inspired me to make a speechless and slow-tempo living portrait of a face, reflecting feelings and thoughts.

I’ve filmed the subject head on. The continuous movement of the drummer distinguishes the image from a still photo. I’ve combined different angles and two images projected in different sizes, which creates a new temporal and philosophical dimension. The images are asynchronous. The durations of video loops differ, causing the work to change constantly.

One of the two images, The Story of Life, is a close-up of a face enlarged on a wall. The other, The Spirit of Life, is a head-on wide shot that cuts to a medium shot. I wanted to focus the attention to the woman’s face and character. The only sign of the setting is the rug under the drum set. On the soundtrack we hear a polka, probably from Russia, being played with the drums and an accordion. It’s a catchy tune that’s easy to vary, and I think it expresses the zeal and joy of life. Because the sound loop is never ending, it also has an undertone of nightmarish compulsion.