Feature: MFAH Screens Two Unique and Very Different Films - HIERONYMUS BOSCH & CS BLUES

This weekend, The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston screens two very different and unique films: COCKSUCKER BLUES and HIERONYMUS BOSCH: TOUCHED BY THE DEVIL. COCKSUCKER BLUES will screen only once on Saturday at 7 p.m. while HIERONYMUS BOSCH: TOUCHED BY THE DEVIL will screen four times: November 18 (this Friday), November 20, December 3, and December 4. In HIERONYMUS BOSCH, we explore the (surprisingly) down and dirty world of art curation. As for COCKSUCKER BLUES, the other film on offer, it is something completely different as the Pythons used to say.

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HIERONYMUS BOSCH

The Dutch painter Hieronymus Bosch (c. 1450-1516) is unique in the canon of late-medieval art. He may not be a household name, but one look at his masterwork, "The Garden of Earthly Delights," now in the collection of The Prado Museum in Madrid, and the recognition is instantaneous. The canvas, alive with fabulous beasts and curious figures mesmerizes, and at first you may not quite believe what you see. But you did see it. Bosch's works have been studied, analyzed and re-analyzed for centuries, with new theories and insights constantly coming to the surface.

To mark the 500th anniversary of his death, his hometown is mounting an exhibition of his paintings, Jheronimus Bosch: Visions of Genius, organized by the Noordbrabants Museum in the Netherlands. The problem is that they don't have any of his paintings, of which only about 25 remain in existence.

The 89-minute documentary goes behind the scenes of the cutthroat world of art curators, following the would-be exhibitors to the museums of the world where the works reside; most notably, The Prado. There they begin a delicate dance of acquisition, the lenders and the lendees. The Prado has the upper hand, and they know it. They don't make it easy.
The audience has a front-row seat at these proceedings, with the added bonus of being able to see the work up close in a way not available to the average museum-goer. And this is where the film really shines.

I have stood in front of "The Garden of Earthly Delights" at The Prado, but only behind the rope, under the ever-watchful eye of the guard, for as long as I dared. I have tried to take it all in, but the myriad figures engaged in the most arcane of activities all but defeated me. I made three trips, and still went away frustrated.

The film makes it possible to linger, and at an eyelash away. Seeing the artist's work magnified and isolated makes it possible to absorb it in small segments, on the big screen, and the experience is amazing. No matter how much you know about Bosch, you are bound to come away with something new and thrilling.

If you thought that all was serene behind the scenes of the world's great museums, you are sorely mistaken. It's as intriguing a detective drama as any mystery film you've seen.

HIERONYMUS BOSCH: TOUCHED BY THE DEVIL shows at 7 p.m. on Friday, November 18; 5 p.m. Sunday, November 20; 7 p.m. December 3; and 1 p.m. Sunday, December 4 at The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, 1001 Bissonnet. For more information, call 0713-639-7515 or visit mfah.org.

CS BLUES

CS Blues, as the museum politely euphemizes (the actual title is a somewhat raunchier two-word term that begins with "c" and ends with "sucker.") is a rarity, and rarely seen. [Editor's note: It's cocksucker. The title of the documentary is COCKSUCKER BLUES. To request reimbursements for a shattered monocle or torn string of pearls, click the contact button on Gary's author page. - Katricia]

In 1972, when the Rolling Stones were preparing for their American tour, photographer Robert Frank, who had shot the cover for their new album, "Exile on Main Street," was commissioned by the band to do a fly-on-the-wall documentary of the backstage side of the tour, and he took to the task with relish. In the end, the fly saw a bit too much, even for the Stones, and the film ran into trouble in the U.S. until 1977, when an agreement was reached whereby the film could only be shown under what were termed "archival conditions" - in a museum setting, for instance - and only if the photographer himself were present. If these conditions were met, the film could be screened for four, but no more, times annually.

And here's where we're in luck. As circumstance would have it, our very own MFAH acquired the film, along with the rights to screen it under the above conditions, except that Frank, now in his 80s, is no longer required to attend.

I have not seen the film, and will see it with you on Saturday night, but according to those who have, it's what we in the '70s would call a "trip". Raunchy enough to cause trouble even in the free-wheeling sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll era, it's not for the squeamish, with more sex, drugs and nudity than even the boys had bargained for. It wasn't because they really cared what was shown, but there were possible legal repercussions, particularly when it pertained to drug use, and the whole thing ended up in limbo.

So if you think you're up to it, and I'm pretty sure I am, join me for the gala screening, wrapped safely in the arms of the fine arts.

COCKSUCKER BLUES screens Saturday, November 19, 2016 at 7 p.m. at The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, 1001 Bissonnet. For more information, call 713-639-7515 or visit mfah.org.