| Title: |
WINDOW TO HEAVEN, A |
| Alternate Title: |
SAINT NEOPHYTOS AND THE ICONS OF WISHFUL THINKING |
| Original Title: |
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| Series Title: |
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| Edition Version: |
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| Data: |
20 min. col. 35mm; 16mm; video |
| Year: |
1990 |
| Country of Prod'n: |
United States; Great Britain |
| Language: |
English |
| Producing Agency: |
Program for Art on Film, a joint venture of The Metropolitan Museum of Art and The J. Paul Getty Trust |
| Sources: |
Films Incorporated Video |
| Int'l Sources: |
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| Director: |
Adrian Maben |
| Producer: |
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| Executive Producer: |
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| Writer: |
Robin Cormack; Adrian Maben |
| Camera: |
Noel Very |
| Editor: |
Christine Pansu; Bernadette Scelles |
| Narrator: |
Adrian Maben; Alan Adair |
| Animator: |
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| Music Composer: |
Gabriel Yared |
| Art Consultant: |
Robin Cormack |
| Researcher: |
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| Addl Credits: |
Asst. Cameraman: Stephane Cami; Computer Graphics: Hubert Fourneaux |
| Cast: |
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| Synopsis: |
Investigates the interplay between words and images written and painted in the twelfth century. Saint Neophytos (1134-1215) was a Byzantine monk who established a community of followers in caves near Paphos on the island of Cyprus. He also commissioned artists to paint the cave walls with scenes depicting the lives of the saints and of Christ. These paintings, along with the writings of Neophytos, were to serve as exemplars of spiritual living. Art historian Robin Cormack and film director Adrian Maben explore the meaning of these images in relation to the texts of Saint Neophytos. The twelfth-century images are compared with modern television commercials--secular images whose message must be decoded by today's viewers. |
| Genre Film: |
Documentary; Criticism |
| Aud./Grade Level: |
General |
| Suggested Uses: |
General Information |
| Subject Headings: |
Painting -- Byzantine -- Asia -- Cyprus -- 12C
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| Assoc Concepts: |
Iconography; Words in art; Art and religion |
| Artist's Name: |
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| Artist on Camera: |
No |
| Reviews: |
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| Awards: |
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| Evaluation: |
Excellent integration of narrative structure, wit, audacity, with a real exploration of the history and meanings underlying the art. Unexpected, clever, and worthwhile, as well as rich and multilayered. Cinematically excellent (shot in 35mm): visuals and editing flow smoothly; brilliant camera movement through the cells of the cave--although some viewers thought this sequence felt rushed. The confrontation of two eras--an attempt to understand a past age in terms of modern experience--is a rare approach in films on art. The argument here may not always be convincing, but it is provocative and takes chances--tries to shake up this platitude-ridden field! Very exciting--and probably because it is about ideas. Technical quality, content, and programming potential all judged very good. |
| Comments: |
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