The Decay of Fiction

The Decay of Fiction exists at an intersection of fact and hallucination in an abandoned luxury hotel. The hotel is in Hollywood. The walls of the Ambassador are cracked and peeling, the lawns are brown, and mushrooms grow in the damp carpets of the Cocoanut Groove Bar. The pool is empty, and the ballroom where Bobby Kennedy was shot is shuttered and locked. A tall, elegant blonde stands transparently on the terrace of her bungalow, smoking and watching the sun rise. Various characters the blonde, hotel guests, cops and an opera singer: all reflections of the rich past of the building come and go, time passes.By using digital techniques, O’Neill puts several layers one on top of another. However he does not bother to create an illusion of reality: he rather focuses attention on the artificial, staged aspects of the film. Contrasting with what narrative tradition demands, he deliberately investigates the limits of credibility. When the hotel is finally demolished, fact has again turned to fiction.See also Tracing the Decay of Fiction, an installation by Pat O’Neill in cooperation with V2.