RR

On Saturday I went to the union to watch "RR" by James Benning. It was an hour and a half long 16 mm film showing trains traveling all over the country. Besides the fact that it was way too long, I found ways to watch it with a different perspective several times in that hour and a half . I was entertained simply by embracing the scenery in each scene. Every shot was so beautiful. The angles he chose to shoot from were smart choices, and all of the colors were rich. The artist had actually shot in 167 different locations across the U.S.A., he chose 43 of them for the film he'd showed in the Union. There was even a time when he waited a day and a half for a train to come along in a certain location, only ending up with a shot of a truck, not knowing that the tracks were being worked on and no trains were traveling. I respect him a lot as an artist. I want to have the same passion for my own work. It's funny, because normally I would think wow anyone could do this why is this art? In a way I do still think that in regards to this film, but the fact that he took so much time and traveled all around the country and how patient he had been, but especially his passion. When I can see an artist's commitment and passion and heart in their work, I cannot judge anymore.