Skip to main content

Video essay about books in Wes Anderson films

You always know when you're watching a Wes Anderson film. Family is at the center of every story the 46-year-old director chooses to tell, and his movies typically adhere to a color palette, that is highly saturated. I always notice the tracking shots and his profound love of symmetry in all of his shot compositions, but I never noticed that books appear frequently throughout his films, until Luis Azevedo of The A To Z Review pointed it out:

"In the work of Wes Anderson, books and art in general have a strong connection with memory. The Royal Tenenbaums (2001) begins with a homonymous book, as does Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009). The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014) begins and ends with a book. Moonrise Kingdom (2012) ends with a painting of a place which no longer exists. These movies have a clear message: books preserve stories, for they exist within them and live on through them."


[h/t: Open Culture]

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Art of Dolce Paganne

I can't even begin to think about how Dolce Paganne comes up with any of the shit she creates. I do know I'm hooked and can't stop looking at her drawings. Taking influence from Asian horror comic books, occult history and ancient mythology, the Antwerp-based artist makes her own "sinister" universe which expands with each new piece.  Also known as Ceren Aksungur, Dolce has a vast catalog of different media to view on her website and Instagram, so if you like what you see below, check out the rest of it here and here .

Eric van Straaten's 3D-Printed Statuettes

I can't remember when I first became entranced with Eric van Straaten 's 3D-printed sculptures. I think I stumbled onto his work through tumblr when I was searching for new artists to follow. Eric's attention to detail is pretty amazing, and the image of the eroticized child-woman is familiar throughout his work. Most of his hyper surreal pieces are 3D-printed in sandstone material, which are created by laying down a thin layer of gypsum powder and using a binding agent and color inks to print a pattern onto it. Once the entire model is printed, it is withdrawn from the print bed and the excess powder is removed. The model is then sealed and ready for display. "I think that the girls I create in my work are visualizations of my own feelings, fantasies and thoughts," the Dutch artist explains. "The girls actually look like someone I (used to) know and the different ‘portraits’ tell something about what I think of myself in regards to her or women ...

This Filipina artist draws with thread

I love it when I procrastinate online and discover someone's work that really catches my attention. Filipina artist Eugenia Alcaide captures her subjects by sewing their impressions on silkscreens. Though created with black cotton thread, the lines look like intricate sketches of graphite with 3D feel. They're captivating, and I wish there was a video to go with these to see how she plots each piece from start to finish.  Ginny began using thread in 2006 while doing her thesis for her degree in Fine Arts, major in Painting, at the University of the Philippines. One of Artinformal's most revered artists, her first exhibit in the gallery was in 2012, and since then she has gone on to display her work in various local and international art fairs. Her unique ability to create three-dimensional portraits by stretching and draping threads to form sculptural drawings has earned her much acclaim. You can check out more of Ginny's work here .