Film News South Africa

Indulge in art on the big screen

Art lovers can enjoy a front row seat to some of the world's greatest art exhibitions on the big screen with Exhibition on Screen.

With theatre-goers experiencing the best theatre in the world with the NT Live series, and opera lovers indulging in the Met Opera screenings, art lovers can marvel at and delight in the amazing works of some of history's most foremost painters on the big screen, in stunning high definition, with the Exhibition on Screen's second season, kicking off at Cinema Nouveau on 22 November.

The cinema has now evolved into a theatre, opera house and museum, where we can share the art of drama, music and paintings. The ground-breaking Exhibition on Screen series has thrilled audiences in over 1000 cinemas throughout the UK, the US, Canada, Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, and Latin America.

Matisse

It launches with Matisse from Tate Modern and MoMA by award-winning arts documentary maker Phil Grabsky & Seventh Art Productions to delight art lovers in more than 40 countries across the world, and will be screened exclusively at Cinema Nouveau theatres in Joburg, Pretoria, Durban and Cape Town for four screenings only on 22, 26 and 27 November at 7.30pm and 23 November at 2.30pm.

Exhibition On Screen Season 2 features five films that cover the exhibition's paintings, while taking audiences behind the scenes to discover what lies behind the exhibition creatively and technically. What each artwork reveals about the artist and the particular historical period is also uncovered.

Indulge in art on the big screen

Filmed exclusively for cinema at the exhibitions and on location, Matisse from Tate Modern and MoMA celebrates the life and work of one of the true giants of modern art as viewers are taken on an intimate, behind-the-scenes tour of London's Tate Modern's critically acclaimed sell-out exhibition, Henri Matisse: The Cut-Outs.

Audiences are invited to enjoy an intimate, behind-the-scenes documentary about this once-in-a-lifetime blockbuster exhibition with expert contributions from those who knew Matisse as well as curators, historians, Tate director Nicholas Serota and MoMA director Glenn Lowry, along with friends and relatives of Matisse (1869 to 1954). The film also includes rare archive footage of the great artist at work.

Insight and emotion

Acclaimed British actor Simon Russell Beale brings insight and emotion to the words of Henri Matisse himself, while actor Rupert Young (Merlin) narrates.

Also included in the production is exclusive new material filmed at MoMA (Museum of Modern Art, New York), revealing the gallery's long and fascinating relationship with Matisse and its preparations for the exhibition that opened in New York in October.

Unseen by visitors to the exhibition, cinema audiences will also enjoy breathtaking musical and dance performances inspired by Matisse's cut-outs.

Six years after he had been diagnosed with cancer, Matisse published Jazz, a limited-edition book containing prints of his cut-out collages. The book and its title signified that, although the artist was nearing the end of his life, he was very much a man moving with the times. He compared the improvisational rhythms of jazz to his own way of working in making his cut-outs.

The golden age of bebop

Invoking the golden age of bebop and jazz greats such as Charlie Parker, the celebrated British musician Courtney Pine has created a very personal, new piece especially for the film, which is performed with a trio of drums, double bass and saxophone from the Tate Modern.

Dance also fascinated and captivated Matisse, inspiring one of his most famous compositions, The Dance 1909, showing five figures dancing in a circle. In 1937, inspired by Leonide Massine, the choreographer with Ballet Russes, Matisse designed the scenery and costumes for a ballet based on Shostakovich's Symphony No.1.

World-famous choreographer Will Tuckett has created a response to Matisse's 'Dance' cut-outs with Royal Ballet principal dancer Zenaida Yanowsky. Their innovative new dance piece reflects the colours, dynamism and freedom of the cut-outs and, fittingly, is set to Shostakovich's music.

Director Phil Grabsky says: "Matisse from the Tate Modern and MoMA offers international audiences the chance to see this once-in-a-lifetime exhibition. For those lucky enough to have viewed it in London or New York, the film offers a wealth of additional insights and exclusive new content, presented in our trademark entertaining and accessible style."

Rembrandt

From 13 December you can indulge in Rembrandt From the National Gallery, London & Rijkmuseum, Amsterdam. Every Rembrandt exhibition is eagerly anticipated, but this major new show, focused on the final years of his life and hosted by London's National Gallery and Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum is the biggest in many years. Given exclusive and privileged access by both galleries, the film documents this extraordinary show and interweaves Rembrandt's life story with the behind-the-scenes preparations at both institutions. For many, this is the greatest artist that ever lived - this film will take a close look at the man behind such acclaim.

Girl With A Pearl Earring and other treasures from the Mauritshuis in The Hague releases on 17 January. After two years on a blockbuster world tour, the Girl with a Pearl Earring has returned home to the much-loved Mauritshuis gallery in The Hague, which has just completed extensive renovations. With huge queues lining up for a glimpse of her enigmatic beauty and nearly 1.2 million visitors at its stop in Japan, the enduring appeal of this masterpiece is indisputable. The beautifully filmed documentary goes in pursuit of the many unresolved riddles surrounding the extraordinary painting and its mysterious creator Vermeer. Who was this girl? Why and how was it painted? Why is it so revered?

Indulge in art on the big screen

With exclusive access from the Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, Vincent Van Gogh - A New Way Of Seeing can be seen from 18 April, 2015. Enjoying complete and unprecedented access to the treasures of Amsterdam's Van Gogh Museum, this is a surprising new film about one of the world's favourite artists, marking both a major re-showing of the gallery's collection and a celebration of the 125th anniversary of Van Gogh's death. Experience the wonder of seeing these masterpieces on the big screen while specially invited guests, including world-renowned curators and art historians, offer their interpretations and explanations of his work. With exclusive new research revealing incredible recent discoveries, the Van Gogh Museum has helped craft a cinema experience like no other.

The Impressionists

The Exhibition on Screen's season ends on 30 May with The Impressionists from The Musée Du Luxembourg Paris, the National Gallery London and the Philadelphia Museum Of Art. The film explores the world's most popular artists, examining the works and lives of Cezanne, Monet, Degas and their compatriots. It looks at the artists behind works of art that fetch tens of millions of dollars, questioning who they were, why they painted, and what lies behind their enduring appeal. To help answer these questions, the film has secured unique access to a major new exhibition focussing on the 19th-century Parisian art collector Paul Durand-Ruel, the outspoken champion of Impressionism. This eagerly anticipated exhibition is perhaps the most comprehensive ever held about The Impressionists. Durand-Ruel's brave decision to exhibit The Impressionists in New York in 1886 introduced enlightened, wealthy Americans to modern French painting. In doing so, he not only filled great American galleries with Impressionist masterworks, but also kept impressionism alive at a time when it faced complete failure. This energetic and revealing film will tell his remarkable story along with that of The Impressionists themselves.

For booking information, go to www.cinemanouveau.co.za or sterkinekor.mob. Download the Ster-Kinekor App on any Nokia, Samsung Android, iPhone or Blackberry smart phone for updates, news and to book. Call Ticketline on 0861-Movies (668 437).

For more on Exhibition on Screen, go to www.writingstudio.co.za

About Daniel Dercksen

Daniel Dercksen has been a contributor for Lifestyle since 2012. As the driving force behind the successful independent training initiative The Writing Studio and a published film and theatre journalist of 40 years, teaching workshops in creative writing, playwriting and screenwriting throughout South Africa and internationally the past 22 years. Visit www.writingstudio.co.za
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