"what makes me choose a motif are... the lines"

December 4, 2023 3:11 PM

Michael Palin and the mystery of Hammershøi. BBC4 (slyt)
posted by clavdivs (7 comments total)

Reminds me of Edward Hopper.
posted by Peach at 5:56 PM on December 4, 2023

So glad to watch this thank you, I added a bit to my Danish heritage here!
posted by Meatbomb at 8:08 PM on December 4, 2023 [1 favorite]

"when he painted nudes, he had to go and lie down"
This is a calm, quiet, muted documentary (appropriate, considering the artist's style). It's got more of a soft pleasantness, not too much outright humor but...

I had the youtube transcript up while watching & ended up cry-laughing over the AI's wild guesses at what "Hammershøi" could possibly be. Lots of variations on "hammer saw" and "hamas". I made a list of every instance which is extremely long, so here are my favorites from the first half hour.

Vilhelm homicide
hemorrhoids
("have you become a fan of hemorrhoids")
("I could see elements in there of hemorrhoids work")
Camus why
aspergers
house fire
Bill Helman honestly
Billy Helen Hammerstein
posted by Baethan at 8:35 PM on December 4, 2023 [7 favorites]

That was lovely, thank you for posting it. His art reminded me of Vermeer, and I learned perhaps for good reason.
posted by maxwelton at 11:28 PM on December 4, 2023 [1 favorite]

Vilhelm homicide
hemorrhoids
("have you become a fan of hemorrhoids")
("I could see elements in there of hemorrhoids work")
Camus why
aspergers
house fire
Bill Helman honestly
Billy Helen Hammerstein

We didn’t start the fire …
posted by mubba at 6:39 AM on December 5, 2023 [5 favorites]

Reminds me of Edward Hopper.

Another guy who didn't like painting faces
posted by KingEdRa at 7:09 AM on December 5, 2023

I enjoyed this a great deal. It is truly interesting to learn of an artist who seemed to absorb some of the movements in art of their time, yet made work that is outside, or not obviously of, those movements. In the landscape segments, I can see some kinda plein-aire/impressionist approaches to light, where the movement, wind? seems implied by a glow, but then again maybe it's just the feeling of light through the trees ( I am very light sensitive so often being outside is being in a world of dark blurbs and glowing/glaring objects).
Seeing Michael Palin as a sincerely curious person who wants to share things is lovely, too. I'll always have that spot where he's the gum chewing host of Blackmail, or the knight who would rather face the peril of the castle of lonely ladies, but yay for expanding and growing (me, too).
posted by winesong at 8:33 PM on December 5, 2023 [2 favorites]