Art Films at the Library
In partnership with the Fredericksburg Center for Creative Arts and the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, the CRRL is proud to offer short films exploring artists and the creative process. Films and notes courtesy of The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. Headquarters Theater, 7pm.
July 14
Chihuly Over Venice
90 min / 1999 / VHS
College through adult
Acclaimed glass artist Dale Chihuly goes on a quest to the glass blowing centers of the world to create a magnificent and unique chandelier installation to hang over the canals and alleys of Venice, Italy. This beautiful video captures not only the elaborate craft of glass blowing but also the stunning scenery of Ireland, Mexico, and Venice.
August 17
Frank Lloyd Wright and the Prairie School
57 min /1999/ VHS
College through adult
This is the story of Prairie School architecture as seen through the designs of Wright and his associates. Inspired by the Arts and Crafts Movement, Louis Sullivan, and the Midwest landscape, the style is portrayed in many examples and with readings of the words of Wright himself. A typical Victorian house is deconstructed and contrasted with Wright's vision of the new American home.
Frank LLoyd Wright's Taliesin: A Tour of His Wisconsin Home
29 min / 1996/ DVD
High school through adult
An extraordinary and stunning video tour of Wright’s Wisconsin home and the structures on the estate. Must be seen to be believed. Includes some older film footage of Taliesin and Wright himself talking about his life and the house. This is the official video made and distributed by Taliesin.
September 29
New World Visions, I: American Art, Architecture & Design 1650-1850
60 min/ color / 1985 / VHS
High school through adult
Vincent Scully, Sterling Professor of the History of Art at Yale University, examines and analyzes the first 350 years of American art, architecture, and design, and how these forms reflect the American consciousness. In these 2 programs, Scully uses as his base the American Wing of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, with its impressive array of paintings, sculpture, decorative arts, furnishings, and interiors. He also ventures on location into larger architectural or natural settings.
October 6
New World Visions, II: American Art, Architecture & Design 1850-1914
60 min/ color / 1985 / VHS
High school through adult
This is part two of the program described above.
November 23
John Singer Sargent: Outside the Frame
57 min / 2000 / VHS
High school through adult
As the foremost portraitist of his time, Sargent exquisitely captured in oil and watercolor the spirit of the Gilded Age. This close look at his work reveals much more than the faces of the wealthy. Emmy winner, Jackson Frost, reexamines Sargent's creations including landscapes, figures, and murals and highlights the paintings El Jaleo, Madame X, Carnation, Lily, Rose, and Gassed.
December 8
Rodin: The Gates of Hell
53 min / 1981 / DVD
High school through adult
This film documents the difficulties and triumphs of casting Auguste Rodin's magnificent 8-ton bronze sculpture, Gates of Hell, by the lost-wax process. The film also chronicles Rodin's life and his artistic development. More than a mere documentary, the film engages the viewer in the intricacies and delicacy of the casting process. The superb editing and soundtrack add to the film's suspense and heighten the drama of a momentous occasion in the history of modern scupture.
