March 7, 2018
An excellent short film about outsider art and mental illness.
It's better to just start watching. It's only 40 minutes. But if you need some substance, here's "5 Things to Know About the Inspiring Outsider Art Documentary That Just Won an Oscar."
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33 comments:
In my circles, "liberal" and "leftist" are dog-whistles for "mentally ill". The two just go hand-in-hand.
@Kyzernick I think that kind of talk is unfair and unkind to the people who really are mentally ill, like the woman in the film. There is circle reason to hate such people.
Link should be
https://news.artnet.com/art-world/5-things-to-know-about-the-amazing-outsider-art-doc-that-just-won-an-oscar-1236194
Thanks for the heads-up on the bad link.
@Kyzernick I think that kind of talk is unfair and unkind to the people who really are mentally ill
As unfair and unkind as the liberals and leftists were when they shut down the mental institutions and forced the mentally ill onto the streets?
I’d love to hear from commeners who have watched the film.
commeners....the AA fans.
I made it halfway. Although the subject matter is interesting, the film's loose structure is driving me batty. I want to know more about her art process and less about her family background. She's a fascinating artist. Marker, water color, papier mache -- what a tool kit. But I'm getting too much "look at what the crazy lady can do" in the movie's tone.
A mentally ill genius. Realizes she has problems and is hoping the right combination of legal drugs will eventually make her feel "normal".
Lot of sane drug addicts hoping for the same thing,taking drugs to feel better than they do/
She had help from competent people, also artists, who cared about her. If she were not an artist, would she have received the same level of attention?
Lot of people homeless who could rise above if given an opportunity. Lots of others just crazy.
The documentary was compelling, and a good reminder that artistic talent might be present in anyone. It also reminds us that even though most creative artistic work is done in solitude, it often is done because the artist feels compelled to do it as a means of expressing themselves to others.
("Outsider art," like all labels and categorizations, diminishes the worth of the individual, and should be avoided.)
There a so many unseen forks in the road for someone like Mindy. So many what ifs such as time, location, parents, wealth, social needs support.
Fortunately she has a personality that engenders others to want to help her; and causes her to be someone who strives to produce, thus providing dignity to life.
It brings out the difficulty of society to match the resources for and needs of the mentally ill.
So many medications! I’d be dead or a zombie.
Didn’t really understand the relation of the film’s title to the story. Yes, one can view getting stuck in traffic with the peace (which Mindy desperately needs) of not having to tackle life’s ongoing challenges, but how does it relate to the movie?
I appreciated her art, usually this style leaves me cold; it tells her story.
Thanks for posting the link to the film.
"only 40 minutes"? The joys of retirement.
Thank you for this post.
The first part of the film - the actual driving on the 405 in a traffic jam and experiencing it as heaven reminded me of my dad in his early 90's sitting at his kitchen table and telling me he would be content to sit there for the rest of eternity - hearing the outside sounds, breathing in and breathing out, watching the shadows the sun created on the floor as it moved across the sky. And it reminded me of your photos of Lake Mendota and what I see as your pleasure in simple existence in that moment. And it made me aware of my own appreciation of the ebb and flow of my very ordinary day to day life.
As far as the rest of the film - it reemphasized to me how God like parents are to their children when in fact they are only flawed human beings struggling to get through their own lives. Whatever pain they cause in our lives needs to be seen through that filter,
There are the experiences that happen to each of us and then there is the way we are affected by those experiences which is dependent on our own physical and mental make up.
The art pieces were extremely moving but I don't have the ability to express those thoughts into words.
Again thank you for the post.
I watched the whole film. It was hard to watch because it is clear how much pain Ms. Alper has had to endure due to her mental illness. It was nonetheless very worthwhile, because her struggle as well as hope and love for her friends is quite moving. I am no expert on art but found her works to be both disturbing and beautiful.
Excellent movie.
But goddamn it why the inaccurate portrayal of ECT?
ECT saved my life. I had a huge mental breakdown in200 and had terrible major depression. No meds worked and I had ECT. It isn't anything like the portrayal in the film.
Great film.
She’s truly gifted. I would prefer the option of being able to view / appraise her work outside the context of her mental health.
I don’t in any way mean to disparage her with this remark, but it’s possible that in addition to being a great artist, she may also be a great actress. Even if she has no conscious awareness that she is acting. The question left unanswered is what her life/art would be like absent the chemical dependency she lives with.
The chords playing at the start, when she is on the 405, are "Goodbye, Cruel World, I'm Off To Join The Service".
This is a good, short, movie about traffic on the 405
"As unfair and unkind as the liberals and leftists were when they shut down the mental institutions and forced the mentally ill onto the streets?"
When did that happen?
"I’d love to hear from commeners who have watched the film."
I haven't had a chance to watch it yet, but I'm very eager to see it. I'll respond when I do.
A fine film and good art. So sad she has to take so many meds to be stabilized. Her works will go into good museums along with her story as a modern Van Gogh.
The music is depressing.
It's interesting that you can get a drivers license in America and can't say the word "one-hundred".
Robert Cook said...
"When did that happen?"
Cookie, I'm prepared to believe you think that is a misrepresentation of what took place, but surely you are aware that people were locked up as crazy a lot more in the past. If you want a time frame, I'd say that like a lot of what we think of as the 60's, it happened in the 70s. Not coincidentally, around the time we started hearing about "the homeless".
I am aware that at some point funds were drastically cut for institutions that housed persons with emotional and psychological disturbances. My question is: what makes Gahrie say it was "the liberals and the leftists" who did this?
“("Outsider art," like all labels and categorizations, diminishes the worth of the individual, and should be avoided.)”
Yeah, but I hate insiders.
“The first part of the film - the actual driving on the 405 in a traffic jam and experiencing it as heaven reminded me of my dad in his early 90's sitting at his kitchen table and telling me he would be content to sit there for the rest of eternity - hearing the outside sounds, breathing in and breathing out, watching the shadows the sun created on the floor as it moved across the sky. And it reminded me of your photos of Lake Mendota and what I see as your pleasure in simple existence in that moment. And it made me aware of my own appreciation of the ebb and flow of my very ordinary day to day life.”
Yeah, thanks for connecting those things. I relate to all that and it’s revealing of the connection to art.
She would like a partner (next door). Saner than a few of our local commenters.
It's great that her mother is supportive now, but jeezum crow, the carnage she inflicted at critical points in that poor woman's childhood and adolescence.
Also check out the documentary "Crumb", available for rent or purchase on Amazon (through the Althouse portal!). It contains similar themes although explores a much darker side to art and mental illness.
"Also check out the documentary "Crumb"..."
Yes, that's one of my all time favorite movies.
Another art and mental illness movie I recommend is "32 Short Films about Glenn Gould."
Another art and mental illness movie is my #1 favorite movie: "My Dinner with Andre."
I'm glad that this artist has people who support her emotionally and in her career. A lot of outsider art is related to "visions" from God (Howard Finster), or true mental illness (Henry Darger). This woman still has a tough road ahead of her being on so many medications - it's mind-blowing. I wish her the best.
I saw all five of the short documentary nominees before the Oscars.
They were all very impressive. I recommend them all. I'm not sure where you'd go to see them now; maybe they're on YouTube?
But "Heaven" really stood out to me. I'm kind of sorry you've told your readers the backstory, because what was great about it was the way it unfolded. There was clearly something wrong with her, but you had to figure out gradually what it was, and even then, you couldn't be quite sure. And there was something so very winning about her, too! The sculpture that is the highlight of her gallery show is amazing.
My friend heard an interview with the filmmaker. He said he was very careful never to mention a diagnosis or a name for her condition in the movie.
"...reminded me of my dad in his early 90's sitting at his kitchen table and telling me he would be content to sit there for the rest of eternity - hearing the outside sounds, breathing in and breathing out, watching the shadows the sun created on the floor as it moved across the sky."
We have a sun room out back. All glass with curved wood beams and Italian tile floor. I sit there often to read, or just feel the warmth of the sun on my face, eyes closed, listening to the sounds. Focusing on breathing in and breathing out can put you into a kind of altered state. Like yoga or Zen meditation. I'm only 64, but I tell my wife: this is where I want to die - sitting here, peaceful, drifting off into eternity.
Definitely understand your Dad's sentiment.
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