The National Gallery's Artist in Residence, Ming Wong, presents 'Saltatio solis in aqua'
Super 8 for The National Gallery's Artist in Residence - Ming Wong | Rooms 10, 58, 59, and 60 Now through 6 April 2026
The National Gallery's 2025 Artist in Residence, Ming Wong, presents a striking new film installation, Dance of the sun on the water | Saltatio solis in aqua. A central technical element of this project was the use of authentic Super 8 film to capture a specific historical texture; this was made possible by our Orchard Film team, who provided Super 8 stock and film scanning, with the Kodak Film Lab London handling the processing of the film.
Wong stated, 'My project for the National Gallery residency was a film installation connecting the paintings of Saint Sebastian in different rooms of the collection. A key reference was the work of Derek Jarman who made his first feature about Saint Sebastian in 1976. His Super 8 films are really works of art, he wielded his camera like a paintbrush. Using Super8 was a way to connect the painterly quality of film with the old masterpieces in the National Gallery'.
The project physically and conceptually connects the 14 depictions of Saint Sebastian - the Roman soldier turned Christian martyr - currently held in the Gallery's collection. By weaving together the museum's own walls with the story of the saint, Wong draws a direct line from Renaissance masters like the Pollaiuolo brothers to the modern day. A primary inspiration for the work is the legacy of British filmmaker Derek Jarman, and their landmark film 'Sebastiane' (1976).
Wong specifically utilised the tactile, grainy texture of Super 8 because Jarman, 'wielded his camera like a paintbrush'. This aesthetic choice creates a 'painterly quality' that acts as a bridge between the old masterpieces and contemporary experimental film.
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