Douglas Gordon: I Had Nowhere to Go

Book excerpt: Douglas Gordon is one of the most important contemporary British video artists. With his film, I Had Nowhere To Go he has created a very special contribution to documenta 14.Based on the literary journal of the well-known filmmaker Jonas Mekas, Gordon's film depicts how Mekas fled his home in Lithuania to escape the Nazis and then emigrated to America after years in so-called Camps for Displaced Persons.But Douglas Gordon's film is not simply a retelling, not an adaptation. It is rather his artistic reaction to the impressive book and its approach to remembering atrocities.This accompanying publication presents a selection of film stills along with text excerpts from Jonas Mekas' accounts.Published on the occasion of the exhibition, I Had Nowhere To Go: by Douglas Gordon at documenta 14, Athens (8 April - 16 July 2017), and at documenta 14, Kassel (10 June - September 2017).