Art

Ai Weiwei, China’s most famous artist, is one of the ruling party’s most trenchant and charismatic critics – and an astute master of online media. “An essential account of the artist-activist’s rise to international fame.” — The Guardian

Gerhard Richter, one of the world’s greatest living painters and now nearly 80 years old, talks about his work as a small film crew documents his creative process. “Akin to being in a museum that’s come alive.” — Film Comment

Matthew Akers’ compelling portrait shows this gorgeous 63-year-old performance artist’s journey from violent early works to her sell-out new work: silently sitting and encountering her audience.

Fascinating, admiring documentary by Dan Salmon about NZ ‘outsider artist’ Susan King who stopped talking aged four and has produced more than 10,000 drawings throughout her life, now sought by art dealers worldwide.

This selection of four short films, two each by artist/filmmakers Ben Rivers and Ben Russell, takes us on a mind-expanding trip across the globe, melding documentary footage into something altogether more fantastic.

Portrait of a happy rural hermit by Brit artist Ben Rivers. “A mysterious, quietly robust dream of a film… Two Years at Sea is less a documentary as such, more an impressionistic portrait, or a film poem.” — Independent on Sunday

Documentarian Michael Heath transports us to the Irish fishing village of Bunmahon where NZ artist Edith Collier painted during 1914–15. A gentle investigation of her work, the landscape, and the locals in this beautiful town.

Jeremy Dumble and Adam Luxton’s gonzo art movie tracks random sets of Auckland characters linked by a teenage boy’s bizarre video project. An eye-popping cameo from Florian Habicht exemplifies its cunning and rude energy.