About this Event
Just in time for Valentine's Day, 7th House and Los Angeles Filmforum are proud to present a rare theatrical program of selections one of the most singular, affecting, and long running works of video art ever made – Wendy Clarke's THE LOVE TAPES (1977–present)!
Spawned from a workshop with her mother’s (pioneering filmmaker Wendy Clarke) UCLA graduate students, “The Love Tapes” project has began in 1977 and continues to this day, amassing video recordings of several thousands of diverse people from around the globe as they intimately share their feelings about love. Participants enter a booth and sit in front of a camera and a monitor, so that they can see themselves, and then proceed to speak candidly about their opinions and experiences – illustrating a vast range of interpretations, meanings, and memories prompted by the word “love.” Afterward, they view their tape and decide either to have it erased or add it to the collection.
The Love Tapes’s profound beauty lies in their simplicity, asking only the rarely addressed question: what is love? Rather than offering a definitive answer, the project creates space for understanding by inviting people of all races, genders, sexualities, classes, and ages to speak freely—within a flexible three-minute format—about how they experience love in their own lives. A couple in love and a parent with a child may describe the feeling in radically different ways, yet neither is presented as more valid or insightful than the other. Participants remain unnamed on screen, shifting attention away from identity and toward the words themselves, while the tapes are organized by filming location to avoid imposing thematic or demographic hierarchies. Over time, however, patterns naturally emerge—particularly across age groups—not to suggest superiority or uniformity, but to illuminate how the focus of love evolves across different phases of life. Taken together, the Love Tapes form an extraordinary participatory archive that invites reflection, fosters empathy, and affirms both the diversity and the shared core of human emotional experience.
"An older woman talked about how she had just fallen in love and it felt exactly the same as when she was 16. A young man said he did not want to feel love because it made his life too complicated. Another woman looked into the lens of the camera and talked as if she were talking to her lover, tearfully telling him how much she loved him. Each tape was unique: most people talked about romantic love and either the joy or pain of their experience."
— Wendy Clarke, Making the "Love Tapes", Visitor Voices in Museum Exhibitions, Kathleen McLean and Wendy Pollock, 2007
Through this process, Clarke found that video operates as both an apparatus for intimacy and a facilitator for self-examination. The project’s scope revealed a rare glimpse of humanity communing through shared experience, albeit one mediated by video technologies of both recording and exhibition. Released on public television stations in the 1980s, the Love Tapes marked a milestone for the advancement of the medium and have been exhibited extensively at prestigious institutions around the world since 1980.
This rare theatrical program has been culled from decades of recordings to celebrate one of the most ambitious, intriguing, and affecting works of video art ever made.
This synopsis draws extensively from “A Love for the Ages,” by Ashton Leach (Wisconsin Center for Film and Theater Research, March 31, 2025) and from Wisconsin Center for Film and Theater Research’s project synopsis.
Dir. Wendy Clarke, 95 mins, Various Countries, English, Unrated, Digital.
Special thanks to Wendy Clarke, Video Data Bank, and Wisconsin Center for Film and Theater Research.
Tickets: $10 (All Screenings Are In-Person Only) | Free for Los Angeles Filmforum Members
Please email [email protected] or phone 323-663-2167 with any questions.
ADVISORY DISCLAIMER
With some exception, The Philosophical Research Society’s 7th House Screenings does not typically provide advisory warnings about potentially upsetting content or subject matter, as sensitivities are particular to each viewer. Please be sure to read event listings, research on the web, or visit Common Sense Media, IMDb, and DoesTheDogDie.com for thorough info on content and age-appropriateness. If you have any specific content advisory questions, please email [email protected].
CONTENT DISCLAIMER
The views, opinions, and thoughts expressed within exhibited works are solely those of their creators and may not represent those of the Philosophical Research Society (PRS), its affiliates, or any individuals associated with PRS. Screenings are intended for educational and entertainment purposes.
ACCESSIBILITY
PRS wants all guests to be able to enjoy our events safely and comfortably. If you require any accessibility accommodation, please reach out to [email protected] before showtime and we will be happy to assist you.
REFUND POLICIES
All sales are final. There are no refunds for PRS events , except in the event of a medical emergency, including but not limited to a positive COVID-19 test. Ticket exchanges may be granted on a case by case basis, pending circumstances.
In the event that PRS is forced to cancel an event entirely, tickets will be refunded or vouchers offered for a rescheduled event.
PARKING
We encourage attendees to consider carpooling, walking or biking to events if possible, and please be considerate of our Los Feliz neighbors when parking. Nearby street parking is available, as well as limited parking onsite at PRS in the front lot (entry from Los Feliz Blvd. when heading east).
PRS EVENT POLICIES
- We reserve the right to refuse service to anyone.
- Events are subject to change without notice, including guest speakers and/or performers.
- We encourage you to arrive at least 30 min. before the scheduled event start time to find parking, enjoy the Bookstore and take your seats.
- Please turn off all mobile devices before the show. Talking and texting are not allowed during the events.
- No filming, audio recording or mobile phone recording of events, screenings, concerts or other programs by audience members is allowed without permission.
- There is no smoking permitted on PRS grounds.
- We strongly encourage guests to wear masks to PRS events to prevent the spread of infectious diseases.
- PRS allows Service Animals into the facility under ADA and state guidelines. For further details please visit www.ADA.gov. No animals permitted whose sole function is to provide comfort or emotional support, under ADA guidelines and CA Health Code.
- Please do not bring outside food or drink into PRS events.
- Weapons are strictly prohibited at PRS events.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Philosophical Research Society, 3910 Los Feliz Boulevard, Los Angeles, United States
USD 12.51
