SYNOPSIS

Filmed over three years in Venice, Italy, Nsukka, Nigeria, and the US, this is a powerful portrait of Africa’s most widely acclaimed contemporary artist. Fold Crumple Crush gives an insider’s view of the artist's practice, the ingenious steps and thousands of hours of labor that convert used bottle tops into huge, opulent wall hangings. Here Anatsui explains how his artworks have become a marriage of painting and sculpture, objects that speak of African history but also reach for the ethereal -- and he talks about his aspirations for artworks he has yet to make.
Behind the charming, easy going artist we discover a man who remains mysterious even to his dearest friends. The film circles around Anatsui, drawing ever closer to a deep understanding of the man and his surprising bottle top hangings. We see the celebrated artist installing work on the great world stage of the Venice Biennale;  we follow him back to the small town of Nsukka as he goes about his daily life, then watch him inside the hive of his studio directing assistants as they stitch together bottle tops into a vast metal hanging. Finally, Anatsui admits us to the privacy of his home where he tells us about his formative years, and reveals a youthful discovery that clouded his life.

53 minutes
Accompanied by ”ANATSUI AT WORK: EIGHT SHORT FILMS”
26 minutesEight_Shorts.htmlEight_Shorts.htmlshapeimage_3_link_0

“In the very best tradition of documentary filmmaking, Vogel’s sensuously contoured films tell stories.” -African Arts, UCLA

TRAILER
FOLD CRUMPLE CRUSH:
THE ART OF EL ANATSUI
PRODUCER 
Prince Street Pictures, New York, USA

ASSOCIATE PRODUCER
Isaac Kpelle, Ghana

DIRECTOR
Susan Vogel

EDITOR
Harry Kafka

MUSIC
John Billingsley

fold crumple crush: the art of el anatsui