I was fortunate to catch _Beautiful Losers_ at its cinematic debut in Tokyo accompanied by an introduction from Aaron Rose and several of the artists featured. The film is an inside look at these fascinating individuals and how their art took in each other's influences and moved from the streets into galleries into commercial agencies and back.
It was an inspiring look at how 'creatives' are made. The discussion of just making stuff for your friends, having street art encapsulate the sacrifices and hopes of each attempt was a much more realistic way to think about nurturing artists as opposed to the '____ is a prodigy who (paints/makes movies/etc).' attitude that rules art reviews and the popular press today. These really were just kids who never stopped painting/making movies/etc. and mastered their crafts.
As documentaries go, this one had fantastic footage of the artists across their evolution. The tribute to Margaret Kilgallen was especially touching. Unfortunately, it suffers from a somewhat wandering message and it was hard at times to piece together the relationships between the artists--which seemed to be at the core of what made them special. You get a sense that this community had fantastic chemistry that really brought out the best but Rose fails to show us how that really comes together. Some artists seem very close while some like Harmony Korine's seem just random and disconnected.
The handling of the commercialization, the artists notions of 'success' and the role of Rose's gallery left me scratching my head. It was all interesting to hear, but I didn't get the point.
Overall, this is worth watching for the great footage, chance to feel like you're right there as the artists show their personalities and a view inside how art should work.
It was an inspiring look at how 'creatives' are made. The discussion of just making stuff for your friends, having street art encapsulate the sacrifices and hopes of each attempt was a much more realistic way to think about nurturing artists as opposed to the '____ is a prodigy who (paints/makes movies/etc).' attitude that rules art reviews and the popular press today. These really were just kids who never stopped painting/making movies/etc. and mastered their crafts.
As documentaries go, this one had fantastic footage of the artists across their evolution. The tribute to Margaret Kilgallen was especially touching. Unfortunately, it suffers from a somewhat wandering message and it was hard at times to piece together the relationships between the artists--which seemed to be at the core of what made them special. You get a sense that this community had fantastic chemistry that really brought out the best but Rose fails to show us how that really comes together. Some artists seem very close while some like Harmony Korine's seem just random and disconnected.
The handling of the commercialization, the artists notions of 'success' and the role of Rose's gallery left me scratching my head. It was all interesting to hear, but I didn't get the point.
Overall, this is worth watching for the great footage, chance to feel like you're right there as the artists show their personalities and a view inside how art should work.