Returning this fall, the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art’s Modernism + Film series kicks off with a slate of films that cut a cross-section through Modernity, from its emergence in the late-nineteenth century to its uncertain fate in the early twenty-first century.
Developed in partnership with the Charlotte chapter of the American Institute of Architects and the UNC Charlotte College of Arts + Architecture, this year’s programs are organized chronologically, according to the stages of Modernity that they capture. Many of the films are contemporaneous with their subject matter, while others are recent and reflect upon the history of the period through a variety of storytelling methods and modes of documentation. Together, they chart the trajectory of the social, technological, and aesthetic conditions of Modernism.
This year, in addition to onsite programs at the Bechtler, some select Modernism + Film programs will be held in new off-site locations that take the spirit of the Bechtler into the community. Others will include guest speakers, panels, and filmmaker talks.
Frederick Wiseman’s 1983 masterpiece, The Store, provides an immersive look into the dynamics of retail and consumer culture in the United States through this documentary about the inner workings of the main Neiman-Marcus store and corporate headquarters in Dallas. The sequences in the film include the selection, presentation, marketing, pricing, advertising, and selling of a vast array of consumer products including designer clothes and furs, jewelry, perfumes, shoes, electronic products, sportswear, china, porcelain, and many other goods.
Find more information here. CoA+A majors receive FREE admission with their museum pass sticker.