Besides an acclaimed career on the stage and silver screen, Cate Blanchett has starred in a series of art installations over the years, notably reciting 13 famous art manifestos, or taking on the role of an orgasming spider. The latest artist to tap the actress for a new installation is the video artist Marco Brambilla. 

Titled The Four Temperaments, Brambilla’s artwork sees the actress perform four distinct character types based on “Temperaments” delineated by the Greek philosopher, Galen: Sanguine, Choleric, Melancholic, and Phlegmatic (represented by the colours yellow, red, blue, and green, respectively). The sanguine, according to Galen, “speak the language of people and fun”, while the choleric speak the language of “power and control”, the phlegmatic of “calm and harmony”, and the melancholic of “perfection and order”.

Showing off her versatility as an actor in Brambilla’s video and sound installation, Blanchett inhabits the four characters in simultaneous images, addressing the viewer directly with the words “I love you” or, as the three and a half minute film progresses, “I don’t love you”. The effect, as the statements interact and overlap, is overwhelming, showing how emotional undertones can shift and change with the slightest modulation.

While The Four Temperaments premieres at Berlin’s Michael Fuchs Gallery September 11, it’s also available to download as an augmented reality artwork via the Acute Art app. The app additionally hosts Marina Abramović’s Rising, plus other AR artworks by Olafur Eliasson, Ai Weiwei, Mark Leckey, Anish Kapoor, and more.

Recently, Marco Brambilla has also worked on Marina Abramović’s new opera, 7 Deaths of Maria Callas (a production that Abramović discussed in a recent conversation with Dazed) while Blanchett has been cast in Guillermo Del Toro’s upcoming adaptation of Pinnochio, alongside Tilda Swinton.

The Four Temperaments is playing at Michael Fuchs Gallery in Berlin until November 14, 2020.