The Act of Drawing explored the physical act of drawing and its representations on screen and in various forms. This included the act of mark making directly onto celluloid, the performative act to camera, and the documentary role of moving image in providing a visual commentary to a drawn event.

Presented alongside LIGHT DRAWINGS: Interventionist Acts, a participatory 16mm film installation led by George Saxon and Vicky Smith, the international exhibition programme featured work by Stuart Brisley, Valie Export, Dryden Goodwin, Milan Grygar, Mark Lawrence Stafford, Rachel Lowe, Nancy Murphy Spicer and Jennifer West. VIVID also commissioned a durational performance by Jordan McKenzie entitled Day Into Night in which the artists repeatedly striked matches across the surface of a gallery wall. The residual red marks created a drawing over time which not only referenced the action itself but also provided the visitor with a drawing that commemorated a period of time.

Weekly 16mm film screenings were presented alongside the exhibition, selected from LUX and Lightcone (Paris). Artists included: Robert Breer, Stan Brakhage, Cecile Fontaine, John Gruenberger, John Latham, Emmanuel Lefrant, Len Lye, Annabel Nicholson, Jürgen Reble, Liz Rhodes, Brian Sharpe, Guy Sherwin, and Stan Van Der Beek.