Chavdar GEORGIEV
Чавдар ГЕОРГИЕВ
Tchavdar GUEORGUIEV
Amanda POPE
Аманда ПОУП
Amanda POPE
Russia / Uzbekistan / USA, 2010, 80mn 
Colour, documentary
The Desert of Forbidden Art
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Пустыня запрещенного искусства

 

 Le Désert de l'art interdit

 Pustynya zaprshchennogo iskusstva

 
Directed by : Chavdar GEORGIEV (Чавдар ГЕОРГИЕВ), Amanda POPE (Аманда ПОУП)
Writing credits : Chavdar GEORGIEV (Чавдар ГЕОРГИЕВ), Amanda POPE (Аманда ПОУП)
Cinematography : Gennadi BALITSKY (Геннадий БАЛИЦКИЙ), Aleksandr DOLGIN (Александр ДОЛГИН)
Music : Miriam KATLER (Мириам КАТЛЕР)
Produced by : Chavdar GEORGIEV (Чавдар ГЕОРГИЕВ), Amanda POPE (Аманда ПОУП)
Release date in Russia : 6 février 2010
 
Language anglais
Sites : desertofforbiddenart.com/, desertofforbiddenart.com/design/dofa_press_kit.pdf

Plot synopsis
This film is a fascinating look at one visionary’s exhaustive campaign to preserve prohibited Soviet artworks by stashing them away in the desert. Igor Savitsky, a native of Kiev, first visited a remote corner of Uzbekistan called Karakalpakstan on an archeological dig in 1950. A frustrated painter himself, Savitsky threw his considerable energy into collecting Karakalpak art. Over the next 30 years, he not only convinced the Soviet authorities of the need for a museum in Uzbekistan, but also got them to fund it. There, 1,700 miles from the watchful eyes of the KGB and state-approved Socialist Realist painting, Savitsky’s Karakalpakstan State Art Museum procured an eclectic collection by avant-garde artists who remained true to their visions, in the face of overwhelming odds. By the time of his death in 1984, Savitsky had amassed an astonishing 40,000 forbidden artworks. The collection remains threatened today by everyone from Islamic fundamentalists to art profiteers. This film is a fascinating look at one visionary’s exhaustive campaign to preserve prohibited Soviet artworks by stashing them away in the desert. Igor Savitsky, a native of Kiev, first visited a remote corner of Uzbekistan called Karakalpakstan on an archeological dig in 1950. A frustrated painter himself, Savitsky threw his considerable energy into collecting Karakalpak art. Over the next 30 years, he not only convinced the Soviet authorities of the need for a museum in Uzbekistan, but also got them to fund it. There, 1,700 miles from the watchful eyes of the KGB and state-approved Socialist Realist painting, Savitsky’s Karakalpakstan State Art Museum procured an eclectic collection by avant-garde artists who remained true to their visions, in the face of overwhelming odds. By the time of his death in 1984, Savitsky had amassed an astonishing 40,000 forbidden artworks. The collection remains threatened today by everyone from Islamic fundamentalists to art profiteers.
 

Selected in the following festivals or events :
- Beijing's First Ever International Film Festival, Beijing (China), 2012
- Tiburon International Film Festival, Tiburon (USA), 2012
- Europe around Europe, Paris (France), 2011
- Vancouver International Film Festival, Vancouver (Canada), 2010
- Clevelant International Film Festival, Cleveland (USA), 2010

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