Being a huge fan of illusionists Penn and Teller, I went into the city to check out their Penn Jillette produced/Teller directed film “Tim’s Vermeer”. Tells a story of Tim Jenison--a tech guy with an interest in fine art--who recognizes something odd about the technique used in the paintings of Johannes Vermeer. Vermeer’s the guy who famously did “The Girl with the Pearl Earring”. Through blending technology with artistic technique, he blows the lid off of Vermeer’s “secret” to how he got his paintings to look like no other paintings of the period. Using this discovered technique, and having ABSOLUTELY NO PRIOR EXPERIENCE PAINTING, he attempts, and ultimately succeeds in spades, to recreate Vermeer’s “The Music Lesson”. A fantastic film about a fantastic individual thinking outside the box. A must see for anyone who appreciates art, ancient technology, debunking myths, pulling back the veil of illusion, quirky documentaries or the intersection of any of the above.
The pinball connection, you ask? Before becoming wealthy via his technological innovations, Jenison made a living repairing and refurbishing pinball and arcade machines. Narrator Penn Jillette mentions this specifically in the film, and Jenison has a few pins set up in his warehouse office where he creates the tools and props used to reconstruct the painting. There are a couple of shots of Jenison’s visitors from the fine art world playing pinball...which I’m sure are included by Teller as a absurd juxtaposition.
The film is currently announced as playing until Friday Feb 28/14 at the TIFF Lightbox (350 King St.W).
Tim’s Vermeer @ TIFF
http://tiff.net/filmsandschedules/festival/2013/timsvermeer
Tim’s Vermeer @ Rotten Tomatoes (with trailer)
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/tims_vermeer_2014/
Vermeer's Girl with the Pearl Earring
Vermeer's The Music Lesson
Vermeer's The Girl with the Pearl Earring
Vermeer's The Music Lesson
The pinball connection, you ask? Before becoming wealthy via his technological innovations, Jenison made a living repairing and refurbishing pinball and arcade machines. Narrator Penn Jillette mentions this specifically in the film, and Jenison has a few pins set up in his warehouse office where he creates the tools and props used to reconstruct the painting. There are a couple of shots of Jenison’s visitors from the fine art world playing pinball...which I’m sure are included by Teller as a absurd juxtaposition.
The film is currently announced as playing until Friday Feb 28/14 at the TIFF Lightbox (350 King St.W).
Tim’s Vermeer @ TIFF
http://tiff.net/filmsandschedules/festival/2013/timsvermeer
Tim’s Vermeer @ Rotten Tomatoes (with trailer)
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/tims_vermeer_2014/
Vermeer's Girl with the Pearl Earring
Vermeer's The Music Lesson
Vermeer's The Girl with the Pearl Earring
Vermeer's The Music Lesson