Listen to the Painter’s Song: Transformation of Images by Voices and Subtitles in Víctor Erice’s El sol del membrillo

Abstract

Víctor Erice’s El sol del membrillo (1992) provides an extreme manifestation of the state of audiovisual media news. On the other hand, a quince tree depicted in the painter’s garden is shown growing and eventually dying. Various sounds can be heard there. Although references have been made to the visual features of the quince, a discussion of the effects of sound has not been developed yet. Therefore, particular attention should be paid to two voices: the radio news voice and the painter’s song. This paper examines how a quince tree can be transformed by the integrated montage of images and voices, and subtitles. The purpose is to explore the significance of this transformation according to the audiovisual media. First, I refer to the short film produced before El sol del membrillo, and explore how the techniques extracted from the painter are developed audiovisually. Then, the final transform of the quince in the last scene is discussed, through a reflection on the film medium itself. In conclusion, the paper posits that to compensate audiovisual media that fails to function in reporting individual casualties, the transformation of quince in this film leads to a momentary redemption in the form of individual graves and mourning.