The Guggenheim Acquires Jill Magid's "Tender Balance"

“Tender Balance” (28 min) 2021, one of Jill Magid's latest films, has been acquired by the Guggenheim Museum.

Filmed in 2020 New York City at the height of the pandemic, Tender Balance is a docufiction exploring the insidious tangle between human bodies and the economy.

“Tender Balance” follows the first iteration of Magid's project, “Tender”: a monumental but nearly invisible public artwork produced by Creative Time. Magid acquired 120,000 uncirculated 2020 pennies and engraved the coins’ edge with the phrase “THE BODY WAS ALREADY SO FRAGILE”. Magid then introduced these pennies into circulation through transactions at bodegas throughout New York.

The film begins behind the scenes at the US Mint and coin distribution networks. Its focus then shifts to individual moments of exchange, at a time when every touch had its risks, thus exploring the vulnerable relationship between the economy and human life. The film was made thanks to the support of Via Art Fund, Field of Vision, Creative Time, and The Renaissance Society.

Premiered at The Renaissance Society and Visons du Reel, "Tender Balance" is Directed by Jill Magid; Producer, Paul Dallas; Executive Producer, Charlotte Cook; Editor, Hannah Buck; Director of Photography, Jarred Alterman; Co-Producer, Dana Brandes-Simon; Original Music, T. Griffin.