Archives for Video category
Edvard Much
William Blake
Francis Bacon
Henry Fuseli
Kathe Kollwitz
James Ensor
Fransisco Goya
Odilon Redon
Hieronymus Bosch
What does it take to be the greatest artist of the century? Can an aspiring artist with true talent and drive really make it in this crazy post-modern era?Jerome, from the movie Art School Confidential, is dying to find out if he can achieve his wildest dreams, but is slowly realizing how messed up the art world, and the world in general, really is.
The movie is somewhat dark comedy starring Max Minghella as a skilled and under appreciated art student who struggles to fit into a school which seems to reward the absurd and shun the gifted. More and more he resents his fellow students, especially after they ignore his best work and praise artwork which children are capable of. He calls one self portrait a “lame Cy Twombly imitation” and gets crucified for it. The fact that Jerome’s teacher (John Malkovich) is a post-modernist has-been who claims that it has taken him 25 years to develop the skills to paint a triangle on a canvas, doesn’t help.
When serial stranglings start occurring around campus, the distraught Jerome becomes a suspect. He can’t help but feel sympathy for the killer…
Also appearing is Steve Buscemi as a temperamental coffee bar owner, and Sophia Myles as Jerome’s unattainable love interest. I assume any audience would find some scenes hilarious, whether they’re involved in art or not. One scene is particularly funny to me because it shows how out of touch with reality some art students can be. The one kid in this scene has me cracking up with every line he has in the movie- he’s the pretentious minimalist type who displayed an unfinished work so the method itself can be the artwork.
This is one of the funny scenes:
Regular videos are great for supplementing articles on art, so you can see the artwork, and hear commentary as well as interviews. Then again if it’s Andy Warhol we’re talking about, you don’t know what to expect.
I’m hoping to head over to the Frida Kahlo exhibition in its last day (chronic procrastination) today at the Philadelphia Museum of Art (if I’m lucky, they haven’t sold out yet), so I’ll be back tomorrow to hopefully fill you in.
These days if I’m watching cable, I’m watching movies. Rarely do I actually watch “TV.” Aside from a couple of shows most television is crap today anyway, with brain dead “quiz” shows and reality TV. I get enough reality. I want to escape reality and go on adventures, and be entertained with comedy, action, and decent drama. When cinema gives us a good art flick, I’m hooked. So don’t be surprised if I’m a little biased in my ratings- I’ll try to be objective.
This is the second list of movies about painters, the first of which you can read here if you’d like. In that list I mentioned Basquiat (1996), Caravaggio (1986), Surviving Picasso, Love is the Devil, The Agony and the Ecstasy, and I briefly wrote of Pollock, which I had not seen at the time. This time I’ve included a link to the trailers so you can see for yourself. They’re all worth checking out.
Goya’s Ghosts ****½
I did a more in depth post about this one a few weeks ago, but it’s certainly worth mentioning again. It is rare that I give a full 5 star (outstanding) rating but this one came close (I gave 5 to There Will Be Blood and Vanilla Sky). As you can imagine I really liked this one. It’s hard to warn you not to have expectations about something while writing a review. That’s akin to telling you not to think about something specific- of course you’ll think about it. Yet one of the reasons I think the critics didn’t like this was because they were expecting something different. It is not exactly a biography on Goya, but involves him in a story about two of his sitters- one being a powerful inquisitor of the brutal Spanish Inquisition, and the other being an innocent victim of such.
The movie is full of suspense and action, as well as good acting. I consider the political messages and parallels to the modern era welcome, but I will warn that you may disagree with me. However, if you are a Goya fan you will enjoy the many paintings you will see in this with an impressive collage at the closing credits. There’s also a scene which shows the artist making a print from soup to nuts- pretty cool stuff.
Pollock ***
I’ll Admit I mentioned this in the first 6 Films About Painters, and I am also mentioning it here in 6 More Films, which doesn’t make sense entirely- so sue me. But this time I actually watched it and I was impressed. Ed Harris (nominee, Best Actor) directs and plays New York abstract expressionist Jackson Pollock alongside Marcia Gay Harden (winner, Best Supporting Actress) who plays Pollock’s wife, artist Lee Krasner. It also stars Val Kilmer as Willem De Kooning, and Jennifer Connelly as Pollock’s love interest who survived the crash that took the life of the artist and another passenger in 1956.
This is a decent artist biography about the man, the artist, the husband. It is no surprise that Harris was nominated for his performance of an often disturbed and extremely alcoholic artist. We see his frustrations with his wife, his rough dealings with critics, and his reaction to success. You’ll see plenty of abstract paintings throughout Jackson Pollock’s history from his early days to his creative drip paintings - all of which were executed by Harris.
Downtown 81 ***
Ed Harris convincingly portrays Jackson Pollock, Stellan Skårsgaard acts as the deaf Spanish painter Goya, Anthony Hopkins as Pablo Picasso, but how often do we find the actual artist in a movie? This is Downtown 81 starring the New York artist Jean Michel Basquiat. Basquiat was played by Jeffrey Wright in Basquiat, which I talked bout in the first post. Basuiat (1996) was a biographical movie about the young artist’s rise to fame in in the 1980s and his friendship with pop artist Andy Warhol. Downtown 81, made in 1981, is more of a “beat movie” providing a documentary on the hip sub-cultures of the city.
Semi-biographical of the artist it portrays, the movie is a fictional account of his daily life. At one point the landlord throws him out after a fruitless attempt to offer some paintings as rent. The movie progresses to show the dealings and interactions with various unique New York characters. Saying this movie is “artsy” is an understatement. While the movie stars the real life Basquait, the audio has been unfortunately lost, and is dubbed over. Of course this adds something to the hipster indie quality.
Factory Girl **½
I hope I’m not being too harsh on this movie. Let me say it is about Edie Sedgwick, one of Andy Warhol’s Factory Kids, and it does not center on Warhol. Nevertheless a movie involving Warhol is worth mentioning. Even though it is about Edie, she and the other Factory Kids, along with the crazy things they did, and the jet set popularity and fashion, and crazy lifestyle was what Andy’s life was all about at the time.
I guess I didn’t like it that much because of the portrayal of Warhol. Usually I like Guy Pearce. He was good in Time Machine, and the first movie I saw him in Ravenous (now that’s a good movie!). We all know Warhol was gay- he was what was called a “dandy,” fashionably ambiguous, yet didn’t come “out” as it is known today. I’ve read through Andy’s unabridged diaries and even there does he not talk so much of the male member as he does in Factory Girl. So it seems his portrayal was just a little over the top.
That said, I’m sure it was a decent flick on the life of Edie Sedgewick- which is what the movie is about anyhow. So I’m probably judging it wrong. Either way I still give it two and a half stars. But to be fair I think I’ll have to check it out again and reappraise it.
Factory Girl trailer.
Frida
I’ll have to file this under “To be watched” but it looks good enough. It stars Selma Hyeck (whose uni-brow I believe is real-but don’t quote me on that one), and Alfred Molina as Diego Rivera, Kahlo’s husband. It was directed by Julie Taymor (Titus).
The Philadelphia Museum of Art is currently showing “Frida Kahlo,” in celebration of the Spanish artist’s birthday. It includes 40 paintings with a focus on her numerous self-portraits.
Girl With A Pearl Earring
Another I haven’t seen yet, but looks like I’ll give it a try. It is about the novel of the same name about the Dutch Baroque painter Johannes Vermeer and the mysterious girl in the famous painting.
Thought you’ve seen everything, haven’t you? Check out this video I stumbled across of elephants who were trained to paint.
When I first heard about this, I expected random Pollock-esque splatters of paint on the canvases or the animals holding a brush in their trunks and making random brush strokes. But see for yourself, these elephants are actually painting. Elephants are a very intelligent animal, capable of grief, self awareness, empathy, compassion and even altruism. They can play, use tools, have an excellent memory and can be trained to make music (elephant orchestras) so it’s no surprise they can make art, as seen above.
In 1997 elephant experts teamed up with artists to create an elephant art academy to raise money and awareness. They taught the animals to hold the brushes and create lines or dots on parts of the canvas to produce pictures, many of which were abstract, but some resemble objects such as flowers and even self portraits. Other times the elephants were allowed to paint how they chose, which resulted in truly abstract and original art which is also sold at auctions.
This reminds me of Koko, the gorilla who could speak sign language, who, along with other gorillas, can create art with finger painting. They are able to distinguish colors and surprising even attach emotional value to them, for instance making a predominantly red painting and calling it, “anger.” You also may remember Tillamook Cheddar, the dog whose painting sales were making the owner quite happy.
Some argue the authenticity of the elephants paintings which is why in the Thailand group seen in the video, paintings are made before a crowd so there can be no doubt. I’ve seen videos where a baby’s arm was shown finger painting, which was obviously the parent holding the arm off screen to paint the picture. In this video I see no such foolery, and certain “myth buster” websites have confirmed its authenticity.
After reading some of the comments to the video some people argued against the captivation and training of elephants. Unfortunately these days it seems there can be no safer place for this beautiful dying species than in the care of professionals and veterinarians in wildlife refuges and zoos across the world. The artwork created by the elephants is sold or auctioned off, sometimes bringing in up to $25,000 at auction houses such as Christies. All of the money goes to the preservation of the elephants, whose numbers are decreasing at an alarming rate.
They may not be able to make truly creative works of art but can be trained to reproduce the same paintings over and over. If you think about it, that is our own situation on a much smaller scale in terms of most of the art we create, as well any other specializations in our jobs and every day life.
Elephants can paint and make artwork time and again. You have no excuse!
The Spanish Inquisition is at the height of its power and witch-hunt atrocities are rampant throughout the country. Charles IV, an Italian, is King of Spain. A revolution is unfolding in France which threatens to turn the social class system upside down and to change the face of government across Europe. Meanwhile a painter works for the crown, and tries his hardest to stay out of politics and tries, as we all do, to ignore the horrors of the world and to live in peace. What could the world look like to a simple court painter, in this time and place, who was slowly going deaf?
In the beginning of “Goya’s Ghosts,” Brother Lorenzo (Javier Bardem), a leading Inquisitor, is at the Holy Office defending some of the prints by Fransisco Goya (Stellen Skarsgård) which the priests are considering vulgar. These prints portrayed witches, goblins, monstrosities, and pagan rituals- possible condoning of heretical beliefs. “The art is not evil,” defends Lorenzo, “they only portray the real world.” A few gasps are heard by the others as the monk goes on to explain that one only need look around and see the world as it truly is: horrible and unholy. Lorenzo pleads for and receives more power to weed out the heretics of society and use any means necessary to prove their unholiness.
To Goya, a painter of royal portraits and high society, life was good as long as he was paid well. His quiet world, however, would be changed as one of his favorite models (Natalie Portman) finds herself in the sights of the Church for refusing pork at an inn. This, of course, means she is a heretic and should be made to confess. After torture she confesses, as anyone would after such pain as her wealthy father points out to Lorenzo after he is invited to dinner at the rich merchant’s mansion. The father even asks Lorenzo if he would confess to being a monkey and a heretic if Lorenzo would be subject to the Church’s holy questions. As Goya laughs at such a thing, the man inquisitive of Lorenzo shows no such sense of humor.
Thus begins the turning of table after unpredictable table in this story of a poor girl who posed for Goya and found herself in Christianity’s dungeons. Having a baby in the prison, she knows the father is a certain monk, who has begged for the Church’s release of the girl to no avail. Throughout the movie we see the invasion of Emperor Napoleon’s Egyptian marmalukes- paid mercenaries who take no mercy on the Spanish populace. At the time of the French invasion the artist is completely deaf. He watches the explosions of the cannons but hears nothing.
Goya later searches for the girl in an asylum where he witnesses horrors that will become noticeable in some of his later works. Remaining neutral and simply trying to make a living, the former court painter watches regimes rise and fall from Charles IV, to Joseph Bonaparte, then the British forces under Duke Wellington. We see inquisitors turned prisoners, then priests again; we see the rich end up in rags, and the rags end up in riches. Will the poor girl survive Catholicism? What will become of the disgraced monk who confessed to being a monkey and a heretic? Will the terrifying events of an aged lifetime cause a genius to go mad, and create brutally dark masterpieces such as Colossus?
I really liked this movie and thought it was very suspenseful, dark yet humorous, and overall well written and directed. Don’t expect a complete biography on Goya, but do expect plenty of shots of many of his masterpieces. I’m glad it wasn’t just a total look at his life, as sometimes there could use a bit more story than simple biographies. Rather this movie lets the whole landscape of Spain at the turn of the 19th century unfold with its political and religious climate.
Every actor did a perfect job for his/her role, even Randy Quaid who played Charles IV. A critic asked if someone could believe such a portrayal. I’m a bit puzzled. I’m sure it was a put down for Quaid, but even if this was true I think they were misinformed. Charles IV wanted to be perceived as a powerful monarch but in truth was not, only a figurehead hiding behind the queen. Look at the buffoons we vote into office today. Parallels are made elsewhere as Napoleon’s generals motivate the French invaders by promising to be met as liberators, when this couldn’t be further from the truth. Say what you like, but the truth is the same today as it was back then. With political candidates literally saying they don’t care what the people want, and promising a century of pointless wars, after entering the new millennium with a ridiculous war, I believe Goya hit the nail on the head when he portrayed humanity as the two men in quicksand beating each other (see below).
Coming from the director of Amadeus you can expect an excellent soundtrack with Spanish guitars in some scenes, and bagpipes of the advancing British troops in one shot, as well as music for an excellent montage of paintings in the end. Randy Quaid even gives a little violin solo! But it’s not that good- you’ll see what I mean.
In summary, don’t believe the critics (who does, anyway?) and watch this film. It’s good for history buffs as well as art buffs. Javier Bardem (No Country For Old Men) really steals the show as Lorenzo with a fantastic performance. It’s full of irony and just downright entertaining. We witness a world full of atrocities which are no different than the world we live in today. Goya’s ghosts are just as likely to be the same as yours or mine.
Goya’s Ghosts (2006) **** 1/2
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Vince' s ear: your art blog about art, art history, painting, sculpture, drawing, illustration, animation, artists, galleries, museums, and plenty more. Dan Kretschmer is the author of Vince' s ear, and also the author of a book called "Masters of the Renaissance," which takes a look at 18 of the most important artists of the Renaissance in Europe.
The purpose of this art blog is to raise general awareness of art and to share knowledge and interests. The author's goal is to spark interest in as many people as possible, and to inspire them to pursue art to enrich their lives.
