WHO GETS TO CALL IT ART?
Directed & Produced by: Peter Rosen.
Edited by: Jed Parker.
Released by: Palm.
Country of Origin: USA. 80 min. Not Rated.
With: David Hockney, Larry Poons, Frank Stella, James Rosenquist, Mark di Suvero, Francesco Clemente, John Chamberlain, Ivan Karp, Calvin Tompkins, George Lois, Ellsworth Kelly & Jonas Mekas; IN ARCHIVAL SEQUENCES: Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg, Andy Warhol, Willem de Kooning, David Smith, Franz Kline & Jackson Pollock.

Beloved and respected by the artists he championed, the cherubic art curator Henry Geldzahler is amicably referred to as “porky pig” and “the coolest of the cool,” but for all, Geldzahler was simply a great friend. His enviable position at the Metropolitan Museum of Art made him a respected figure in the stodgy art scene uptown. But at a time when ‘50s abstract expressionism transitioned to vivacious Pop Art, Geldzahler reveled in parties with his close friend Andy Warhol and the post-gallery/late-night gatherings of painter Larry Poons and avant-garde filmmaker Jonas Mekas. Geldzahler was the rare curator who essentially lived with the artists. His dedication to the avant-garde culminated in his 1970 exhibition, “New York Painting and Sculpture 1940-1970.” The largest exhibit of modern art ever shown at the MET was as revolutionary as it was controversial – critics called it “Henry’s playground” and questioned his authority to spearhead such a monumental exhibition.

Geldzahler having passed away in 1994, director Peter Rosen uses audio recordings, photo montages and Geldzahler portraits drawn by the likes of David Hockney, set against a rapturous soundtrack featuring The Velvet Underground and The Monks, to name a few. Many of the artists, such as Frank Stella, James Rosenquist and John Chamberlain, are not only witty but also hilariously frank on camera. Rosen also has plenty of never-before-seen archival footage of Warhol, Jasper Johns and Jackson Pollock to offer as well.

Who Gets to Call It Art? does not break new ground in terms of style and depth, but it’s an unpretentious exploration that endeavors to be its own Pop Art, with its colorful, fast-cut sequences and projected images behind the interviewees. At one point, Chamberlain coins the collective attitude of the ‘60s New York art scene: “What will the public think? Who gives a rat’s ass! It’s their job to catch up.” Judging from today’s enduring fascination with the music and art that colored that era, we are still trying to catch up. Marie Iida
February 1, 2006