Artists and Films: The Process

Here are some recent films that give a little look into the studios and thought process of artists.

As a fan of anything Americana, and signage in general, I’m excited about this movie “Sign Painters”  I may have to go get the book now.

I only saw one film during the Cleveland International Film Festival, and it was “Breaking the Frame”. I took the director out as much as I could for that afternoon, and here’s hoping she’ll be back to speak at Cleveland Institute of Art for another screening soon. Her insights and process into making this film just add to the experience. If you don’t know who Carolee Schneemann is, this is a great overview.

Also, the film I saw last year, “Beauty is Embarrassing” is now available on Netflix and streaming. If you haven’t seen it yet or know about Wayne White, it is pretty great. Funny guy. It will be especially interesting for those who ever watched “Pee-Wee’s Playhouse”.

And while we are at it, here is a little video of  “a painter that sometimes sings” Richard Butler of Psychedelic Furs talking about his newest work from his studio in Beacon, NY. I’ll admit I am still miffed that a friend and I wore ‘I ♥ Richard Butler’ t-shirts that I made — drew a picture of him and all — and he wouldn’t talk to us or anything after the show; this was during a solo tour and not many people came out for the gig. He ran out those back doors and into his tour bus as fast as he could! Modesty indeed! Well I guess I still like him, he has a Bruegel book on his bookshelf and he has a cat in his studio.