Wigs and Candles

This season, we tried something a little different. We tried to learn about wigs, this most important accessory and one of the main contributors to our obsession with period film! Join us a we share what we learned through our research and look at some of our favourite wig moments out the 30! movies we have reviewed so far. Books and websites mentioned: Book: "Fashions in Hair: the First Five Thousand Years," by Richard Corson Website: Curationist: "Hair and Makeup in Ancient Egypt" YouTube: "The Real Reason People From History Wore Powdered Wigs" Films mentioned: Barry Lyndon (Stanley Kubrick, 1975) Belle (Amma Asante, 2013) Chevalier (Stephen Williams, 2022)

To close their 5th season dedicated to artists and films about their lives, Gaby and Andreina discuss the 2018 film Van Gogh: At Eternity’s Gate.Directed by Julien Schnabel and starring Willem Dafoe as Vincent Van Gogh, the movie is a visually arresting and moving depiction of the painter’s last years. In their discussion, Gaby and Andreina discuss the representation of the artist’s imagination and subjectivity in film, Julien Schnabel’s rich directorial approach, and their connection to Van Gogh and his art.***Spoiler alert! While reviewing this film, we go through key scenes and may reveal the ending, so be warned of spoilers!***Links and sources:Interview with director Julian Schnabel at the TIFF 2018Interview with Willem DafoeInterview with Oscar IsaacJohn Berger, The Sense of SightSelf-Portrait with Bandaged Ear, Vincent van GoghVan Gogh Museum

In this episode, Andreina and Gabriela learn more about the French sculptor Camille Claudel (1864-1943), through two films: Camille Claudel (1988) and Camille Claudel 1915 (2013).An artistic prodigy from a very young age, Claudel gained recognition and acclaim as an artist during her lifetime. However, in the popular imagination, she is most often remembered as Auguste Rodin's lover.Andreina and Gabriela discuss how Camille Claudel is portrayed in the two movies and how her dimension as a female artist and woman in a male-dominated art practice is conveyed: do the films give us a good sense of who she was as an artist?Join us in this third episode of our series of discussions about artists and their art in film.Links and sources:Abstract of article “Camille Claudel: trajectory of a psychosis”The Art Institute of Chicago: Member Lecture: Camille ClaudelCamille Claudel through Five WorksCamille Claudel, Bust of RodinAugust Rodin, Thought (Camille Claudel)

In this episode, Gaby and Andreina learn more about the French artist Camille Claudel (1864-1943) by watching two films portraying different times in her life: Camille Claudel (1988) and Camille Claudel 1915 (2013). Claudel became one of the most acclaimed sculptors of her time through prodigious ability and drive. However, in popular imagination, she is most often remembered as August Rodin's lover, a secondary character in the history of one of France's greatest artists.Gaby and Andreina discuss how Camille Claudel is portrayed in both films and how the artistic dimension of her life is represented: Do these two films succeed in portraying Claudel in all her dimensions, including as a woman and an artist? Listen to this special episode, the third in our series dedicated to artists and their art in film. Links and sources: Abstract of the article “Camille Claudel: trajectory of a psychosis” The Art Institute of Chicago: Member Lecture: Camille ClaudelCamille Claudel through Five WorksCamille Claudel, Bust of RodinAugust Rodin, Thought (Camille Claudel)

Gaby and Andreina continue their exploration of art through period film and discuss the film Mr. Turner. Directed by Mike Leigh and starring Timothy Spall as the English romantic painter J. M. W. Turner, the movie tells the story of the painter during the last 50 years of his life when he was at the peak of his artistic abilities. Gaby and Andreina discuss Timothy Spall's portrayal of the painter and how the tone and style of the movie shape our perception of Turner's art.Links and sources:J. M. W. TurnerUntold Lives Blog: Hannah Danby – JMW Turner’s housekeeperThe Art of the SublimeJ.M.W. Turner RA (1775 - 1851)

In this first episode of the 5th season of Wigs and Candles, Andreina and Gaby discuss the film Hilma, a biographical movie about the Swedish painter Hilma af Klint. Gaby and Andreina talk about Klint's career as a female painter in the 19th and early 20th centuries and her unusual approach to art and spiritual painting, a genre to which she greatly contributed.Touching on themes of what it is to live a creative life and follow your artistic calling and dreams as a woman, Gaby and Andreina open the season with a film that deeply touched their hearts. Links and sources: Art historian Julia Voss on Hilma af Klint See the Guggenheim Museum’s Most Popular Show EverHilma af Klint Foundation

To cap off their 4th season,  Gaby and Andreina discuss the 1975 Stanley Kubrick film Barry Lyndon.With the help of a very special guest, we discuss the technical marvels of this film as well as it enduring beauty and depth. Sources and links:Barry Lyndon Making ofLeon Vitali on KubrickReview from The GuardianRoger Ebert Review

In this episode, Gaby, Andreina, and a special guest, discuss the beloved 2005 Joe Wright adaptation of Pride and Prejudice.One of the most popular adaptions of the novel by Jane Austen, the film remains surprisingly fresh after almost 20 years since it was released. Gaby, Andreina and their guest discuss the movie timelessness, the remarkable cast, and many other fun detours along the way.***Spoiler alert! While reviewing this film we go through key scenes and may reveal the ending, so be warned of spoilers!***Links and sources:Short interview with Keyra KnightleyBehind the Scenes Pride & Prejudice BTS - The Politics of 18th Century Dating (2005)The CastManic Pixie Girl TropeWanderer above the Sea of FogKarolina Żebrowska: I watched every version of "Pride and Prejudice" so you don't have to

In this episode, Gaby and Andreina finally watch a movie they have been waiting a long time to discuss.A Royal Affair, tells the story of Princess Caroline Matilda of Great Britain and her husband King Christian VII. The story follows the years during Christian's reign when the ideas of the Enlightenment start to be introduced into the kingdom, mainly through the influence of Johann Friedrich Struensee, a physician and thinker who is deeply influenced by the movement.Released in 2012 in Denmark, A Royal Affair tells a story in which love, politics, ideas, and history intersect in astonishing and heartbreaking fashion. Join us as we discuss what it means for pivotal national historical moments to be portrayed in film and what makes a period film, well, a period film. ***Spoiler alert! While reviewing this movie we go through key scenes and may reveal the ending, so be warned of spoilers!***Sources & further readings:Interview with cast + crew on the Berlinale 2012Interview with Mads Mikkelsen - Empire MagazineMaking of documentaryFilm Review on The GuardianHistorical Accuracy of A Royal Affair

In this episode, Andreina and Gabriela discuss the 2022 filmThe Woman King.Written by  Dana Stevens and directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood, The Woman King tells the true story of the Agojie, an all-female warrior force in the Kingdom of Dahomey in the 1830s, in what is present-day Benin.Starring a formidable Viola Davis as the military general who eventually would become the woman king, the film tells a story of bravery, sacrifice, and female empowerment hidden within the history books during one of the darkest periods in modern times: the transatlantic slave trade. Andreina and Gabriela discuss the main cast performances, the power of representation, and their efforts to expand their knowledge of the history of women across the globe. ***Spoiler alert! While reviewing this film, we go through key scenes and may reveal the ending, so be warned of spoilers!***Sources and links:Interview with cast at TIFF 2022Interview with Viola Davis and CastThuso Mbedu in “The Daily Show” with Trevor NoahLashana Lynch and Thuso Mbedu in Good Morning AmericaFilm review on The New York TimesWarrior Women with Lupita Nyongo