NEW YORK DREAMER (52 min.)
2005

Zaretskaya Nina

"Don Quixote", "Technocrat", "Pitchman", "Magnetizing character", "Charismatic figure", "Bad-boy from art" – these contradictory epithets are given to one and the same person, Thomas Krens, Director of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation.

Created under his leadership Guggenheim Museum Worldwide Net is often called "franchises". There is even a gag in the art world that one day the Guggenheims will outnumber the McDonalds. However, these very politics of developing the Guggenheim into a Global Brand have won Thomas Krens the reputation of one of the most dynamic and visionary museum directors of our time.

Presented documentary is actually a portrait of this imposing and controversial figure. Based on the interviews with Thomas Krens, film includes a vast variety of visual materials: footage of Krens’ earlier exhibits, his public appearances, meetings with friends and colleagues, motorcycling rides with participation of the Hollywood celebrities (motorcycle is the old Krens’ passion, he rides his favorite black mustang of BMW brand even to his office and to exhibition openings), video of the Solomon R. Guggenheim’s extensive international activities (New York, Venice, Bilbao, Berlin, St. Petersburg).

The "direct speech" of the hero is what makes this work unique. Avoiding the off-screen commentaries, there were incorporated the views and opinions on Krens by different people: his collaborators, like Mikhail Piotrovsky, Director of the State Hermitage Museum (St. Petersburg), and opponents. The author’s position is revealed through the editing of these statements and interviews.

Director and producer – Nina Zaretskaya

video: 256 Kbps. fragment

The site has been created with the assistance of the "Open Society Institute" (Soros Foundation). Russia