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In Explosion Ma Baby (2016), Pauline Curnier Jardin investigates how collective rituals can act as forms of catharsis or purification. Between 2010 and 2019, she went every year to the procession in honour of St Sebastian in southern Italy. During this intense ritual, men hold up their naked babies to be blessed. Her own children, Ada Pepita and Balthazar, were also blessed there. Curnier Jardin managed to film the procession from its very heart, even though this is traditionally forbidden territory for women, who are only allowed to follow at the back of the procession, barefoot or in socks. The vulnerable, androgynous martyr St Sebastian, whose body is pierced by arrows, has evolved over time into a queer icon. The rough Super 8 images, saturated colours and intuitive editing make watching Explosion Ma Baby a trancelike experience. The film marks a turning point in Curnier Jardin’s practice. Whereas she had previously created her own theatrical performances in a group, she later focused on observing and documenting existing rituals, often religious and folk practices that form part of European cultural memory. Examples include the performance Sebastiano Blu (2018) and the films Le Lente Passioni (2020) and Fat to Ashes (2021).

Credits:
Directed by Pauline Curnier Jardin
Image by Pauline Curnier Jardin and Julien Hogert 
Music and Sound Design by Vincent Denieul 
Editing by Margaux Parillaud 
Drums by Benjamin Coli 
Co-production by Le Confort Moderne, Poitiers and the Rijksakademie Van Beeldende Kunsten, Amsterdam 
Distribution by EYE Film Instituut Netherlands
Courtesy of the artist and ChertLüdde, Berlin and Ellen de Bruijne Projects, Amsterdam