By Rama Gaind
‘Herb & Dorothy’ (Madman Entertainment) relates an extraordinary story of Herbert Vogel, a postal worker, and Dorothy Vogel, a librarian, who managed to use very modest means to accumulate one of the most important contemporary art collections in history.
The Vogels began purchasing the works of unknown artists in the early 1960s when very little attention was paid to minimalist and conceptual art.
They chose to use Herb’s salary to purchase art and live on Dorothy’s modest income.
Their criteria to buy was simple: the artwork had to be affordable and small enough to fit into their one-bedroom Manhattan apartment.
Together they collected more than 4,000 works which was a ‘love of art’ for them.
Thus, they became curatorial visionaries by supporting artists who went on to become world-renowned names such as Richard Tutl, Christo and Jeanne-Claude, Chuck Close and Sol LeWitt.
Filmmaker Megumi Sasaki has beautifully captured the attraction felt by the Vogels towards their priceless collection: not as trophy items, but as custodians.
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‘The Burning Season’ (Madman Entertainment) elaborates on one person’s initiative and drive to make a difference in this world.
It tells the story of a young man who is not afraid to confront the biggest challenge of our time.
Armed with a laptop and a backpack, Dorjee Sun, is one young Australiansocial entrepreneur who believes there’s money to be made from protecting rainforests in Indonesia, making an impact on climate change and saving the orangutan from extinction.
What’s more he has the courage of his convictions.
He goes across the globe seeking investors in his carbon trading scheme. It’s a battle against time as Lone Drøscher Nielsen and the orangutan centre that has reached crisis point with over 600 orangutans rescued from the fires and Achmadi, small scale palm oil farmer, who is ready to set fire to his land to plant more palm oil.
With an introduction by Hugh Jackman, this is one documentary that’s heart-warming.
