Dismantling the Dream Factory

Monday, April 1, 1996Dismantling the Dream FactoryBy Rodney
Tanaka

Daily Bruin Senior Staff

Spotlights shine on the elegant staircase as photographers await
the entrance of a screen legend. Norma Desmond sweeps down the
stairs, looks deep into the camera lens and says, "I’m ready for my
closeup."

"Sunset Boulevard’s" Norma Desmond and her celluloid
contemporaries receive a close up examination in the Museum of
Contemporary Art (MoCA) exhibit, "Hall of Mirrors: Art and Film
Since 1945," and an accompanying film series at UCLA’s Melnitz
Theater.

The exhibit examines the relationship between film and art with
works from both mediums. The film series, organized with the UCLA
Film and Television Archive, offers double features that drift from
conventional pairing.

"We decided that for the film series we would primarily look at
the influence of Hollywood on the other arts," says Andrea Alsberg,
director of programming at the UCLA Film and Television Archive.
"We thought of the films that took into account all forms of art
and then we just broke it down. We were thinking about various
limitations of the frame that artists both in film and in parking
have to deal with."

Albert Lewin’s 1945 film, "The Picture of Dorian Gray," showing
on April 18, uses a painting as its centerpiece. The protagonist
trades places with a portrait of himself, so the painting grows
older while Dorian Gray remains young. Lewin’s style and choice of
imagery explores the merging of film and art.

"Dorian Gray is shot in a very one-dimensional, harsh light so
even though he is alive, he looks like a painting himself," Alsberg
says. "It’s a black-and-white film, and the only time you see color
is when you finally see the painting of Dorian Gray himself and it
has become this monstrous human being."

The pairing of films by Akira Kurusawa and John Ford show how
two directors from different backgrounds can share the common
influence of visual storytelling. Ford’s "The Searchers" features
shots of the desert and wide open spaces where "the place is just
as important as the human being walking through it," Alsberg says.
"(Kurusawa’s) ‘Ran,’ to a certain extent, is like that. The
characters are important but it’s the color and the way they are
shot and it’s the whole look of the film that’s equally
important."

Alfred Hitchcock created his own brand of visual style, and his
film, "Vertigo," plays a key role in the film series and exhibit.
In her "Hollywood Film Stills" series, artist Cindy Sherman dresses
up like Kim Novak, the female lead in "Vertigo," and recreates a
scene from the movie.

"’Vertigo’ is a film that I would say if people could see the
exhibition and then see the film they would get a lot more from the
film or see it in a different light," Alsberg says. "Of course, the
film stands on its own. You can just have this added component as
to how this film has influenced such a magnitude of artists that
are working now."

Sherman’s photographs are included with other contemporary
artists in "Rear Window: Fragments of the Cinematic Past," one of
three sections within the exhibit. This section examines art from
the mid-1970s to the present that use films of the past to comment
on current events.

Raul Ruiz’s "All the evil in men …" eerily recreates rooms
that show the resident’s inner demons. The rooms are viewed through
openings shaped like crosses. The wall of one room is covered with
what appears to be blood. A cup of water seems to indicate that the
resident will return soon. The television broadcasts only
static.

The second section of the exhibit, "Cinema Degree Zero: Testing
the limits," focuses on the ’60s and early ’70s, when filmmakers
and artists boiled film down to its basic elements. The work of
Fabio Mauri examines the apparatus used in viewing films. G.W.
Pabst’s "Westfront" is a 16mm film projected onto a fan in
motion.

Michael Snow’s "Two Sides to Every Story" projects two images on
each side of a screen. Each film shows images of the opposing
camera. When a card is placed over one movie camera the image on
one side of the screen goes black while the other side shows this
action taking place.

The section that opens the exhibit, "Lost Illusions: Dismantling
the Dream Factory," examines the demystification of Hollywood.
Robert Frank’s "H for Hollywood Sign" shows the backside of the
famous landmark. From the front, the white letters represent the
magic and promise of Tinseltown. The rear view shows the boards
used to prop the H up, a very sobering vantage point. The exhibit
testifies to the impact that film has had on artists, in addition
to individuals.

"Whether you’re an artist or not, we grow up now with film very
much educating us not only in the way we see the world, but how we
interact and how we are as human beings," Alsberg says. "How we
form relationships and how we handle conflict and love are
sometimes influenced by a film that we have just seen."

The stature of the films in the series at Melnitz enhance the
influence they have over viewers.

"We are showing some of the great films of all time in this
series, and if you look at what’s playing in Westwood and what
we’re playing here, there’s really no comparison," Alsberg says. "I
really encourage students to come look not only at the popular
films, but the less popular films, because every one of these films
have been hand-picked for a very specific reason.

"(The films) have gone out in the world," Alsberg adds. "They’ve
been influenced by art or continue to influence the artists, and to
look at them in that capacity rather than just to look at them as
an isolated incident brings a richer sense to the work."

EXHIBIT: "Hall of Mirrors: Art and Film Since 1945" at the MoCA
through July 28. Admission is $6 for adults, $4 for students with
ID. For more info call (213) 626-6222. Film series at UCLA’s
Melnitz Theater, from April 6 through May 5. Adults $6, students
with ID, $4. For more info call (310) 206-FILM.

The Museum of Contemporary Art exhibit, "Hall of Mirrors: Art
and Film Since 1945," explores the relationship between film and
art and features Mimmo Rotella’s collage, II Mostro Immortale
(Caltiki), 1961 (right) and "Selected Screentests" by Andy Warhol
(above).

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