The video Heaven's Gate is a recent addition to Brambilla's Megaplex series, which explores the themes of collective storytelling, media saturation, and cultural fantasies through looping scenes from iconic movies. Heaven's Gate takes the viewers through seven levels of Purgatory, each one filled with references to Hollywood classics and genres, from westerns and musicals to sci-fi and horror. The result is a stunning and satirical portrayal of the cinematic extravagances and illusions that shape our collective imagination.

The video collage was originally commissioned by Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM) in 2021, where it was shown as a large-scale projection on the museum's façade. Now, it has been adapted for the Sphere in Las Vegas, where it is being projected on the dome's 160-foot-high screen, creating an immersive and enveloping experience. The Sphere's state-of-the-art sound system also enhances the impact of the video's soundtrack, which was composed by Brambilla himself.

The artwork, which runs in a perpetual loop, is both a celebration and a critique of the allure of Hollywood. As Swedish art critic Daniel Birnbaum writes in his essay 'Marco Brambilla’s Labyrinth of Labyrinths': “In the work, Brambilla makes visible the concomitant tensions present in religion, industry and celebrity, ascension and fall, innocence and experience, vanity and pageantry, sexuality and awakening, simplicity and excess.” Heaven's Gate speaks the language of Hollywood's dream factory, while simultaneously drawing attention to its underlying contradictions and anxieties. It is a tribute to the art of cinema, but also a critique of its violence and excess.

Brambilla is an acclaimed artist and filmmaker who is known for his innovative use of video and digital media to create immersive and complex visual narratives. His works are in the collections of major museums and institutions around the world, such as the Museum of Modern Art, Guggenheim Museum, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and Kunsthalle Bern. He has also directed feature films, such as Demolition Man and Excess Baggage. His works explore the impact of mass media and technology on our culture and perception.

Heaven's Gate is on view at the Sphere from December 1st, 2023, to February 18th, 2024. It follows Brambilla's previous show at the Sphere, KING SIZE, which was a hypnotic tribute to Elvis Presley that premiered in September 2023. More information about this show and other work by Brambilla can be found at his website and at the Sphere's website.

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