A short 2016 movie seeks to rewrite art history to include Black artists who have historically been left out of the American art history canon. Roberta says it’s a compelling piece of filmmaking that shows some progress but a lot of work still to come for an equitable inclusion to be achieved.
Read MoreWith the country in state of high turmoil after recent neo-Nazi demonstrations in Charlottesville, VA, and the President’s apologia of the alt-right and attack on peaceful demonstrators, Michael Lieberman’s review of the documentary film, “Whose Streets?,” about Michael Brown’s murder by police in Ferguson, MO, adds relevance to the discussion about institutionalized racism.
Read More“I did it because I could,” says Rocky 184, the one woman graffiti writer who gets a deep look in the movie. The self-proclaimed tomboy from Washington Heights is not alone in her unfocused motivation. “I was bored,” says Snake 1. It was not political, say a number of the others. The best, nuanced comment is from Cool Earl, who says “It was a sign of the times, a sign of our youth, our lack of funds and perhaps our lack of paternal guidance.”
Read MoreThe film, about a talented, articulate and ambitious artist, raises an important question. Why is an artist overlooked? A movie can’t answer definitively, but in 84 fast-paced and colorful minutes Art Bastard delivers a hint of why a rebellious yet loveable personality and his rollicking, politically-charged and mostly humorous paintings are under the New York art world radar. In the words of the movie’s smartest commentator, the oracular Richard Armstrong, Director of the Guggenheim Museum and Foundation, “It’s about chance and geography.”
Read MoreAmong other things, and perhaps these are for another movie, I’d like to know what the role of DIA Art Foundation is in Land art — they have a big commitment to the works of Walter De Maria. How did they get involved? How about Gagosian Gallery, which shows (and sells) Michael Heizer’s works today? And it would be nice to hear from Michael Govan, who championed Heizer’s works when he ran DIA and continues to do so as Director of LACMA.
Read MoreWhat stands out are the photos of Peggy — with her artists, with their art, in her galleries and her museum. And what makes this biographical film really special, like I said at the top, is the smart, sassy commentary of the woman, her voice strong, even at age 80, giving the hint of the incredible drive of her personality.
Read MoreThe 103 minutes of Pina rush by quickly, even for a non-dance aficionado. It’s not just the 3D effects in Wim Wenders’ tribute to the late dancer/choreographer Pina Bausch, although there are a couple 3D wows. What is captivating is the love. Love of the dancers for their late artistic director (who died in 2009, 5 days after being diagnosed with cancer); love of Wenders for his subject; and love of human beings by Pina, whose exquisitely choreographed dances telescope the joy, sorrow and need of one human for another … More » »
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