Phil Solomon
Encyclopedia
Phil Solomon is an American
experimental film
maker noted for his work with both film and video. Recently, Solomon has earned acclaim for a series of films that incorporate machinima
made using games from the Grand Theft Auto
series. His films are often described as haunting and lyrical.
Solomon was an associate of the influential American experimental filmmaker Stan Brakhage
, with whom he taught film at the University of Colorado
in Boulder
. Solomon and Brakhage collaborated on three films. In a 1992 poll for the British film magazine Sight & Sound
, Brakhage picked Solomon's Remains to Be Seen as one of the ten greatest films of all time. The film had previously been selected as one of the top ten films of 1989 by the Village Voice.
Solomon received a Guggenheim Fellowship
in 1994. In 2007, he was the recipient of the Thatcher Hoffman Smith Award from the University of Oklahoma.
On April 10, 2010, Solomon's first museum commission, American Falls, opened at the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. The six-projection video/sound installation received great acclaim before closing in July 2010. In conjunction with the Corcoran exhibition, Solomon's career as a filmmaker was explored in "Rhapsodies in Silver," a three-program survey at the National Gallery of Art.
In the May/June 2010 Film Comment
poll, The Top 50 Avant-Garde Filmmakers of the Decade, Phil Solomon placed at number 5, tied with his late colleague, Stan Brakhage.
A re-edited, feature-length, single-projection version of "American Falls" was featured at the New York Film Festival's "Views from the Avant Garde," on October 1, 2010. The single projection version of the film condenses the original multi-projector format into a triptych, placing three independent (yet associative) images next to one another.
. One of Solomon's instructors was the experimental filmmaker Ken Jacobs
, who started his first class with a screening of Tony Conrad
's film The Flicker
. Solomon initially disliked the film, but the experience, followed by a screening of his future collaborator Stan Brakhage
's Blue Moses, had a profound impact on his development as a filmmaker. Another formative experience came in the form of a lecture by critic Fred Camper on Brakhage's Anticipation of the Night.
Solomon began making films in 1975. Solomon has since destroyed some of his early works, many of which were made in imitation of Brakhage.
Solomon has been teaching at the University of Colorado
since 1991.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
experimental film
Experimental film
Experimental film or experimental cinema is a type of cinema. Experimental film is an artistic practice relieving both of visual arts and cinema. Its origins can be found in European avant-garde movements of the twenties. Experimental cinema has built its history through the texts of theoreticians...
maker noted for his work with both film and video. Recently, Solomon has earned acclaim for a series of films that incorporate machinima
Machinima
Machinima is the use of real-time 3D computer graphics rendering engines to create a cinematic production. Most often, video games are used to generate the computer animation...
made using games from the Grand Theft Auto
Grand Theft Auto (series)
Grand Theft Auto is a multi-award-winning British video game series created in the United Kingdom by Dave Jones, then later by brothers Dan Houser and Sam Houser, and game designer Zachary Clarke. It is primarily developed by Edinburgh based Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games...
series. His films are often described as haunting and lyrical.
Solomon was an associate of the influential American experimental filmmaker Stan Brakhage
Stan Brakhage
James Stanley Brakhage , better known as Stan Brakhage, was an American non-narrative filmmaker who is considered to be one of the most important figures in 20th century experimental film....
, with whom he taught film at the University of Colorado
University of Colorado at Boulder
The University of Colorado Boulder is a public research university located in Boulder, Colorado...
in Boulder
Boulder, Colorado
Boulder is the county seat and most populous city of Boulder County and the 11th most populous city in the U.S. state of Colorado. Boulder is located at the base of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains at an elevation of...
. Solomon and Brakhage collaborated on three films. In a 1992 poll for the British film magazine Sight & Sound
Sight & Sound
Sight & Sound is a British monthly film magazine published by the British Film Institute .Sight & Sound was first published in 1932 and in 1934 management of the magazine was handed to the nascent BFI, which still publishes the magazine today...
, Brakhage picked Solomon's Remains to Be Seen as one of the ten greatest films of all time. The film had previously been selected as one of the top ten films of 1989 by the Village Voice.
Solomon received a Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowships are American grants that have been awarded annually since 1925 by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts." Each year, the foundation makes...
in 1994. In 2007, he was the recipient of the Thatcher Hoffman Smith Award from the University of Oklahoma.
On April 10, 2010, Solomon's first museum commission, American Falls, opened at the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. The six-projection video/sound installation received great acclaim before closing in July 2010. In conjunction with the Corcoran exhibition, Solomon's career as a filmmaker was explored in "Rhapsodies in Silver," a three-program survey at the National Gallery of Art.
In the May/June 2010 Film Comment
Film Comment
Film Comment is an arts and culture magazine published by the Film Society of Lincoln Center, of which it is the official publication. Film Comment features critical reviews and in-depth analysis of mainstream, art-house, and avant-garde filmmaking from around the world...
poll, The Top 50 Avant-Garde Filmmakers of the Decade, Phil Solomon placed at number 5, tied with his late colleague, Stan Brakhage.
A re-edited, feature-length, single-projection version of "American Falls" was featured at the New York Film Festival's "Views from the Avant Garde," on October 1, 2010. The single projection version of the film condenses the original multi-projector format into a triptych, placing three independent (yet associative) images next to one another.
Biography
Originally from New York City, Solomon attended SUNY-Binghamton and received an MFA from the Massachusetts College of ArtMassachusetts College of Art
Massachusetts College of Art and Design is a publicly-funded college of visual and applied art, founded in 1873. It is one of the oldest art schools, the only publicly-funded free-standing art school in the United States, and was the first art college in the United States to grant an artistic degree...
. One of Solomon's instructors was the experimental filmmaker Ken Jacobs
Ken Jacobs
Ken Jacobs is an American experimental filmmaker. He is the director of Tom, Tom, The Piper's Son , which was admitted to the National Film Registry in 2007, and Star Spangled to Death , a nearly seven hour film consisting largely of found footage.He coined the term paracinema in the early 1970s,...
, who started his first class with a screening of Tony Conrad
Tony Conrad
Tony Conrad is an American avant-garde video artist, experimental filmmaker, musician/composer, sound artist, teacher and writer...
's film The Flicker
The Flicker
The Flicker is an experimental film created in 1965 by Tony Conrad. The film consists of only 5 different frames, a warning frame, two title frames, a black frame, and a white frame. It is currently being re-made digitally into a compact computer program by Tony Conrad's son...
. Solomon initially disliked the film, but the experience, followed by a screening of his future collaborator Stan Brakhage
Stan Brakhage
James Stanley Brakhage , better known as Stan Brakhage, was an American non-narrative filmmaker who is considered to be one of the most important figures in 20th century experimental film....
's Blue Moses, had a profound impact on his development as a filmmaker. Another formative experience came in the form of a lecture by critic Fred Camper on Brakhage's Anticipation of the Night.
Solomon began making films in 1975. Solomon has since destroyed some of his early works, many of which were made in imitation of Brakhage.
Solomon has been teaching at the University of Colorado
University of Colorado at Boulder
The University of Colorado Boulder is a public research university located in Boulder, Colorado...
since 1991.
Filmography
- The Passage of the Bride (1979–1980)
- Nocturne (1980)
- What's Out Tonight Is Lost (1983)
- The Secret Garden (1988)
- Clepsydra (1992)
- The Exquisite Hour (1989/1994)
- Remains to Be Seen (1989/1994)
- Elementary Phrases (w/ Stan Brakhage) (1994)
- The Snowman (1995)
- Concrescence (w/ Stan Brakhage) (1996)
- Psalm I: "The Lateness of the Hour " (1999 - )
- Psalm II: "Walking Distance " (1999)
- Psalm III: "Night of the Meek " (2002)
- Seasons... (w/ Stan Brakhage) (2002)
- Crossroad (w/ Mark LaPore) (2005)
- Rehearsals for Retirement (2007)
- Last Days In a Lonely Place (2007)
- Still Raining, Still Dreaming (2008 - )
- American Falls (2008 - ) - forthcoming installation at the Corcoran Gallery of Art
External links
- Phil Solomon Official Website
- Professor Phil Solomon Faculty Page, Film Studies, University of Colorado at Boulder
- "Reflection on the Avant-Garde Experience: A Meditation on Phil Solomon's The Secret Garden by Dana Anderson
- Phil Solomon program at the Conversations At The Edge program Conversations At The Edge at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago
- Phil Solomon on IMDB
- Michael Sicinski's Cinemascope magazine article on Phil Solomon
- Michael Sicinski's review of "Last Days In A Lonely Place" by Phil Solomon
- Patrick Friel's review of Phil Solomons In Memoriam trilogy as printed in The 11th Views from the Avant-Garde, the experimental film program of The New York Film FestivalNew York Film FestivalThe New York Film Festival has been a major film festival since it began in 1963 in New York. The films are selected by the Film Society of Lincoln Center...
- NY Times review by Manohla Dargis
- CINEMAD interview with Phil Solomon
- American Falls installation and NGA Retrospective review by Genevieve Yue
- ARTFORUM review of American Falls at the NYFF
- Film Comment Avant-Garde Film poll, Top 50 Filmmakers of the Decade, May/June 2010