Sunday, April 25, 2010

Watching Paint Dry: Alex Katz: Five Hours



It’s usually a tie between watching paint dry and watching grass grow for the title of most boring thing to do ever. Watching the paint dry and, more importantly, flow in Alex Katz: Five Hours, however, may be the most fascinating thing you’ll find yourself watching. Renowned American portraitist Alex Katz allowed himself to be filmed in 1992 painting January III, a triptych featuring a portrait of his wife Ada flanked by a wintry forest, from beginning to end over the course of five hours. Boiled down to 20 minutes, those five hours seem like an eternity—in a good way. Please come over to Picture This at Big Think to read more of "Watching Paint Dry."


[Many thanks to Microcinema for providing me with a review copy of Alex Katz: Five Hours.]

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