Art serves as an inspiration for many other disciplines, and the seventh art has been no exception. Through biographies or documentaries, these films show us the human and most creative side of the great artists of art history. These are some of the films about art that are essential to make us dream.
#5: “Girl with a Pearl Earring” (Peter Webber, 2003)
Starring Scarlett Johansson, the story focuses on this character who gave life to the famous painting of the Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer. The girl becomes an employee in the artist’s house, and before her delicacy, he begins to pay attention to her. The cinematographic value lies in the setting, the photography, and the color palette itself, which is so reminiscent of that used by Vermeer. It was a highly nominated film from San Sebastian to the Goyas and the Golden Globes.
#4: “Frida” (Julie Taymor, 2002)
The biopic reviews the tumultuous marriage of Frida Kahlo, played by Salma Hayek, and the Mexican muralist Diego Rivera. The film portrays her quest for freedom, her sexuality, and her resilience in the face of a debilitating illness, and how she reflected her world between painting and imagination.
#3: “Pollock” (Ed Harris, 2000)
The film narrates the life of the painter Jackson Pollock, creator of new techniques and maximum representative of abstract expressionism, the first American vanguard. The piece reviews his artistic career and the complexities of a tormented man who died in a car accident at the age of 44. The actor Ed Harris fulfills the dream of playing and debuting as a director after reading the biography “Jackson Pollock: An American Saga”. He became so involved that he painted the pictures we see in the film himself.
#2: “Exit Through the Gift Shop” (Banksy, 2010)
One of the most exciting documentaries on the world of art is told from the perspective of the mysterious urban artist, Banksy. The story focuses on Thierry Guetta, an eccentric French dealer based in Los Angeles, who is recorded by the artist showing exclusive images of urban art.
#1: “Loving Vincent” (Dorota Kobiela and Hugh Welchman, 2017)
Nominated to the Oscars as the best animation film, it is the first oil painting film in history. More than 115 different painters participated in the creation of the more than 60,000 frames that make up the film, using the same style as Van Gogh. This atypical biography focuses on the last days of the painter’s life; it is a tribute to art.
