“Creating Art is to speak the truth. Painting is the language of the Gods” – Max Gimblett
You will discover through this intriguing documentary, that Max Gimblett the artist, is a proclaimed living Zen Master. His art is a quest of outside of mind and body to express gesture and flow of being in his paintings.
Max Gimblett a New Zealander, leaving these shores eventuates in New York in the mid 1970’s, setting himself up as an artist in a New York loft.
Just like his paintings, Max talks with expression, juxtaposed to his Zen spirituality. A charismatic kiwi bloke, his explosive gesture has meaning – as in life, it is “all in one”, in essence the same meaning to Max.
The documentary is mainly set in Max Gimblett’s New York Loft Studio, he candidly talks of his life, his work, and most importantly, his Zen Master Spirituality. We have insight into this intriguing Art world Max has created for himself, you can feel his studio is like this creative mad-hatter factory, fuelled with caffeine addiction, as one assistant explains: “Energy is produced through about seven cups of coffee a day.”
Max is insightful, he has gained a lot from his life, putting into practice his Zen and Art. He has created a strong belief system, you will hear things like, “You must believe in Karma”, “You are it – no bullshit”.
I see this interesting dichotomy of Abstraction expressed through his calligraphic flow of strokes, expression, explosive energy, and the calmness of minimalism, existing as one.
Doc Edge screens the best international and homegrown documentaries from 10 – 21 May in Wellington, and 24 May – 5 June in Auckland. For more info check out docedge.nz
