The Culture of the Structure , 2006
Directed by Konstantia Kontaxis
Documentary Film
By the summer of 2003, as the seven public art installations at the Arsht Center for the Performing Arts were beginning to materialize, the depth and enormity of these projects came to life. Miami-Dade Art in Public Places saw a great need for these projects to be documented on film, as they would serve as icons of our County for years to come. It was decided that the film should be an artwork in and of itself, capturing the essence of creating the public art works.
The Culture of the Structure focuses on the design development, fabrication, and installation of each of the public art projects at Arsht Center for the Performing Arts. The film captures the interaction between the architects and the artists, as well as the relationship of the works with the performing arts center. To highlight the intimacy of the creative process at all levels, director Konstantia Kontaxis pursued a style of film making in the cimena-verité fashion, allowing the artists-creators to become the makers of a performance.
Kontaxis and cinematographer Ed Talavera obsessively followed each artist, from studio visits in New York City, Miami and San Francisco to quarries in Italy and a glass fabricator in Kentucky, in order to capture every intimate detail of the projects coming to life. Their work will serve as a history of the works, as an educational and promotional tool for Miami-Dade Art in Public Places, but perhaps most importantly, it is meant to be enjoyed by audiences around the world. Designed to accommodate various screenings and viewers, the film was produced in two versions, a twenty-minute “short” film and the original piece, which is approximately an hour in length.
To schedule a screening of the film please contact Brandi Reddick at 305.375.5362
