A BitterSweet Life

Banksy

Even if you’re not entirely familiar with street artist Banksy, you’ve undoubtedly seen his work pop up online and most assuredly heard of him after 2010 documentary, Exit Through the Gift Shop. Banksy directed the film, which in part tells the story of the early days of street art, but also shows how Thierry Guetta — also known as Mr. Brainwash — became an overnight creative sensation. The film raises a number of interesting questions about the nature of art in general, but perhaps the bigger subject is the validity of the doc — a point of debate amongst critics, the art community, and casual fans. As an artist with a penchant for satire — the nature of his work entirely subversive — many assumed the movie was a meticulous performance by Banksy, despite claims by the director that it was the real deal. We may never truly know if the film was a huge prank, but even if it is a social statement by the artist it seems entirely fitting of his canon.

Julian Schnabel

It’s not unusual to hear art-savvy moviegoers describe Julian Schnabel’s films as better than his paintings. The 1980s art star has had a strange creative cross to bear as his films have drawn attention away from his painterly pursuits. Even though Schnabel’s bravado has often made it difficult to like him as both artist and filmmaker, his work speaks for itself. Basquiat — about tragic hero Jean-Michel Basquiat — benefited from Schnabel’s intimate view of the New York art scene and personal relationship with the artist. Later efforts like Before Night Falls — about persecuted Cuban poet Reinaldo Arenas — and The Diving Bell and the Butterfly — about Elle editor Jean-Dominique Bauby’s inability to verbally communicate with the world after a paralyzing stroke — are beautifully impressionistic and have the conceptual allure that for many his paintings do not.

David Lynch

David Lynch’s earliest creative desires were for drawing and painting, not filmmaking. The gritty streets of Philadelphia and time at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in the late ’60s helped inspire a series of short films. Eventually Lynch made his way to California where his surrealist Eraserhead was born. From there his darkly alluring filmography slowly took shape. It’s been six years since his last feature (it was a five year wait between movies before Inland Empire appeared), but Lynch has plenty to keep him busy — including a music career and newly released album. Art remains a large part of his life, however. In case you had any doubt that his films and paintings were largely similar, Lynch offers this juicy and telling tidbit about his process:

“When it comes to painting, it’s the darker things I find really beautiful. All my paintings are organic, violent comedies. They have to be violently done, and primitive and crude, and to achieve that I try to let nature paint more than I paint, and stay out of the way as much as I can. In fact, I don’t paint with a brush too much any more – I prefer to use my fingers. I’d bite them if I could.”

Steve McQueen

It seems strange to say that a film about Irish Republican Bobby Sands’ hunger strike at the Maze Prison in 1981 would be stunning to look at (Hunger), but artist-director Steve McQueen’s breathtaking imagery proves that there is beauty in the places we’d least expect them. The British talent shares a level of artistry in his challenging works — portrayed most recently in sex addiction tale Shame — that reveals a genuine passion for visual storytelling.

Written by Alison Nastasi