[ONGOING] BOX 12: POINT OF BEGINNING: IN THE STUDIO WITH ZOË WELSH
A new documentary that screens tonight and tomorrow!
Greetings!
I hope the smoke from the wildfires is making a quick exit out of everyone’s home. Here in Pittsburgh the AQI has dropped from 192 this morning to the 50s. So, it’s a welcomed change.
Well, tonight I premiere a new film! (Also, tomorrow night.) These are free screenings that you can attend.
June 30, 2023 | "Point of Beginning" film premiere at Union Hall (above Bar Marco), 8pm, free
July 1, 2023 | "Point of Beginning" film premiere at Bottom Feeder Books, 7pm, free
The film is called Point of Beginning, and it documents five months in the art studio of Zoë Welsh. Don’t believe me? Well, Bill O’Driscoll of WESA wrote about it. (Consider signing up for his weekly arts newsletter.) Also, my friends Alyssa Waldron and Laurie Barnes will screen their short film “fugue” to start each evening.
At some point during the pandemic, I became mildly obsessed with watching Michael Blackwood films—nearly all of his artist portraits from the 1970s and 80s. Architects, too. These films captured folks like Philip Guston, Christo and Jeanne-Claude, and Isamu Noguchi in their studios, making work and casually discussing their approach, sometimes in riveting detail and sometimes drolly. The films are an amazing document of a crucial period of art making. At some point, I figured that I wanted to repoint my filmmaking tendencies towards documenting Pittsburgh artists (like I did in 2013 with my first film Ongoing Box) so that there would be some document of what happened this year in future years.
Being able to spend a few Saturdays each month for five months in Zoë Welsh’s studio was wonderful. We’d film for two to four hours, and slowly a variety of paintings, large and small, would take form. It was an interesting challenge to not intrude on the creative process—to try to stay out of the way, only occasionally changing the camera angle. If pressed for a 20-hour Director’s Cut, I could make that happen. As it is, the film clocks in at 46 minutes.
Zoë writes very nicely about the filming process:
Zoë Welsh: This was such an incredible and vulnerable experience, opening up the process behind my otherwise very private painting practice for all to see as I worked with Dave over the course of 5 months in the studio, allowing him to cover the process of creating a large painting, and a series of miniature paintings that served as the data products from the research I conducted during my graduate program in art therapy.
This film is also incredibly special to me as it chronicled the pregnancy of my little one, as I created paintings over the course of my pregnancy that delved into my feelings about having a rainbow baby and pregnancy after loss, attachment and fear during pregnancy, and the deep, deep unwavering love I carried for my little Sylvan as I made the most art I ever have in such a short period of time this past year.
If you can’t make it to the screenings, we’ll hopefully do more in the fall. Also, if you buy the soundtrack and download it, there is a .png file that gives you a link to watch the film. You can do that on Bandcamp/below.
I’m sure there is more to say about this project and others, but I’ll let you get on with your weekend. Hope to see you tonight and tomorrow!
Major thanks to Shelby and Andrew at Union Hall/Bar Marco and Ryan at Bottom Feeder Books for hosting these screenings!!
Best,
Dave