By Rachel Rosen

Transforming the quotidian into the sublime is no small task, but for the four artists featured in MAKE--a new film by local documentarians Scott Ogden and Malcolm Hearn--it's been their life’s work. MAKE is a love letter to the artistic process in its purest form, at a time when we are becoming increasingly estranged from examining the elusive origins of creative impulse.

In the documentary, Ogden and Hearn resurrect the quietly enduring idea that the drive and compulsion to create is always in us, whether either deeply embedded, or righteously demanding to ascend the surface! The very completion of this film is a testament to the relentlessness of The Muse herself--MAKE was a decade-long journey featuring the works of Hawkins Bolden, Ike Morgan, Prophet Royal Robertson, and Judith Scott.

Scott, whose sculpture (pictured above*) is dense with colorful, fibrous, and lovingly wound nests—all concealing and protecting a secret armature, did her MAKE-ing at the atelier/gallery/community for artists with special needs called Creative Growth in Oakland, CA . Bolden, who was master engineer of all things assemblage, relied only on his sense of touch, having lost his eyesight at the age of eight. Morgan, whose boldly expressionistic take on political celebrity is captured in his prolific renderings of U.S. Presidents—past to present—is the only living artist featured, and still resides in Austin, TX. The fourth artist included in the film--a true visionary from Louisiana--Prophet Royal Robertson, served as inspiration for Sufjan Steven’s most recent album, “The Age of Adz.”

MAKE includes a soundtrack with original compositions from Sufjan Stevens and Marc Bianchi (Her Space Holiday), along with music by Jim Guthrie, Oneida, Tommy Guerrero, and Au Revoir Simone. Come by the American Folk Art Museum this Friday, June 17th, to celebrate the release of MAKE and to check out ongoing screenings.

Screening times:

1:00, 3:00, 4:30 & 5:45 pm

The reception is 5:30-8:30 pm in the museum atrium, with live music by Takka Takka.

* Untitled (Multicolored Nest)
Judith Scott (1943-2005)
1988/89
Oakland, California
Yarn and twine with unknown armature
8 x 36 x 25"
American Folk Art Museum, gift of Creative Growth Art Center
2002.21.2
Photo by Gavin Ashworth


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