Kong
08-06-03, 10:04 PM
Yet another review for a documentary that most of you folks probably haven't seen. Kong hopes you'll read it anyway.
http://www.roxie.com/shared/SprgSum02/river6.jpg
Rivers & Tides: Andy Goldsworthy Working With Time
Much of contemporary art is inaccessible, overly esoteric, and an all together mystery to many, many people. Kong is one of those people. Kong sees a 2x4 piece of plywood spray painted white and sitting in a sterile museum as having little or no meaning to his life. How can we relate to a piece of plywood painted white? Why do pieces like this win awards? Many artists, art enthusiasts, and art students might be able to make highly convincing arguments for the creativity and meaning behind these works, but that won't change the fact that most people find that kind of art to be cold, and irrelevant. So, when Kong first read about Rivers & Tides in his local indie theater's program guide he wasn't very excited, but then he saw the trailer and things changed.
Rivers & Tides is about sculptor Andy Goldsworthy, and his work. Goldsworthy makes ephemeral art out of things he finds in nature. He makes piles of rocks, chains of leaves, etchings in ice, or splashes in streams. This might not sound like very exciting ar,t or cinema, but you'd be surprised. Goldsworthy usually works alone, and often no one else ever sees his works except in the photographs he takes of them: the locations are often remote, and his results sometimes only last a few hours.
These sculptures might sound as esoteric as the art Kong referenced in the first paragraph, but that couldn't be further from the truth. Goldsworthy's work is often drop-dead gorgeous. He makes the kind of art that children often do only his is on a whole new level. A line of leaves strung together and placed in a stream only to uncoil and drift with the current might sound hoity-toity on paper, but the visceral beauty is undeniable, and one can easily see why Goldsworthy would endeavor to do such work: it's personally gratifying. That's really the best explanation for why his work is so pleasant to view; Goldsworthy's work is beautiful, and it's a true labor of love. He isn't out to please an audience (which often doesn't even exist); he's out to please himself.
The photography of the film is wonderful, and the musical score is also very nice. There is no narration in this movie, just Andy Goldsworthy discussing his feelings on his art. Goldsworthy's sentiments may be a bit mumbo-jumbo-ish, but they give an honest glimpse of his views. Rivers & Tides is a ravishing, meditative documentary that is almost certain to captivate, and instill a sense of amazement in you. Don't miss it.
***1/2 of ****
http://www.roxie.com/shared/SprgSum02/river6.jpg
Rivers & Tides: Andy Goldsworthy Working With Time
Much of contemporary art is inaccessible, overly esoteric, and an all together mystery to many, many people. Kong is one of those people. Kong sees a 2x4 piece of plywood spray painted white and sitting in a sterile museum as having little or no meaning to his life. How can we relate to a piece of plywood painted white? Why do pieces like this win awards? Many artists, art enthusiasts, and art students might be able to make highly convincing arguments for the creativity and meaning behind these works, but that won't change the fact that most people find that kind of art to be cold, and irrelevant. So, when Kong first read about Rivers & Tides in his local indie theater's program guide he wasn't very excited, but then he saw the trailer and things changed.
Rivers & Tides is about sculptor Andy Goldsworthy, and his work. Goldsworthy makes ephemeral art out of things he finds in nature. He makes piles of rocks, chains of leaves, etchings in ice, or splashes in streams. This might not sound like very exciting ar,t or cinema, but you'd be surprised. Goldsworthy usually works alone, and often no one else ever sees his works except in the photographs he takes of them: the locations are often remote, and his results sometimes only last a few hours.
These sculptures might sound as esoteric as the art Kong referenced in the first paragraph, but that couldn't be further from the truth. Goldsworthy's work is often drop-dead gorgeous. He makes the kind of art that children often do only his is on a whole new level. A line of leaves strung together and placed in a stream only to uncoil and drift with the current might sound hoity-toity on paper, but the visceral beauty is undeniable, and one can easily see why Goldsworthy would endeavor to do such work: it's personally gratifying. That's really the best explanation for why his work is so pleasant to view; Goldsworthy's work is beautiful, and it's a true labor of love. He isn't out to please an audience (which often doesn't even exist); he's out to please himself.
The photography of the film is wonderful, and the musical score is also very nice. There is no narration in this movie, just Andy Goldsworthy discussing his feelings on his art. Goldsworthy's sentiments may be a bit mumbo-jumbo-ish, but they give an honest glimpse of his views. Rivers & Tides is a ravishing, meditative documentary that is almost certain to captivate, and instill a sense of amazement in you. Don't miss it.
***1/2 of ****