Sometimes decay can be as beautiful as perfection. At least that’s the feeling we get looking at these gorgeous 35mm nitrate film frame clippings from the Davide Turconi Project, which we spotted over at 50 Watts. According to Joshua Yumibe, who curated the selection, “such frames make up a relatively small yet remarkable portion of the collection. As these shapes and hues have tragically faded in disintegrating emulsion, we are left with fragments that, through the workings of time, have transmuted into breathtaking images akin to abstract works of art.” Indeed, each of these images, already art in its own way, has become something mysterious and remarkable — a new life for an old story. After the jump, check out a few of our favorites, and then be sure to head over to 50 Watts to check out the rest of the collection.
Clip #15726: Red Eagle (di. Lawrence Trimble, Vitagraph, 1911). Image Credit: Davide Turconi Project
Clip #12251: St. Francis of Assisi (di. Enrico Guazzoni, Cines, 1911). Image Credit: Davide Turconi Project
Clip #21908: La Mort de Mozart (di. Louis Feuillade, Gaumont, 1909). Image Credit: Davide Turconi Project
Clip #05843: La Vengeance du bottier (di. Max Linder, Pathé Frères, 1909). Image Credit: Davide Turconi Project
Clip #11147: La lampada della nonna (di. Luigi Maggi, Ambrosio, 1913). Image Credit: Davide Turconi Project
Clip #21972: Spaventare il deserto (Gaumont). Image Credit: Davide Turconi Project
Clip #23053: Moderne Dresseur (Pathé, 1910). Image Credit: Davide Turconi Project
Clip #18088: Barbe bleu (Pathé, 1907). Image Credit: Davide Turconi Project
Clip #08386: Le Chien du volontaire (Lux, 1909). Image Credit: Davide Turconi Project
Clip #21894: La Mort de Mozart (di. Louis Feuillade, Gaumont, 1909). Image Credit: Davide Turconi Project
