Achieving the Unachievable

Sep 1, 2007

0h 52m

★ 5.0

Overview

M.C. Escher is among the most intriguing of artists. In 1956 he challenged the laws of perspective with his graphic Print Gallery and his uncompleted master-piece quickly became the most puzzling enigma of modern art. Fifty years later, can mathematician Hendrik Lenstra complete it? Should he?

Genres

Documentary

Production Companies

Locomotion Films

Achieving the Unachievable Trailers

No Trailers found.

Cast

Self

Denys Arcand

Self

Joost Batenburg

Self

François Bergeron

Self

Hendrik Lenstra

Archival Footage

M. C. Escher

The Mona Lisa Curse is a Grierson award-winning polemic documentary by art critic Robert Hughes that examines how the world's most famous painting came to influence the art world. With his trademark style, Hughes explores how museums, the production of art and the way we experience it have radically changed in the last 50 years, telling the story of the rise of contemporary art and looking back over a life spent talking and writing about the art he loves, and loathes. In these postmodern days it has been said that there is no more passé a vocation than that of the professional art critic. Perceived as the gate keeper for opinions regarding art and culture, the art critic has supposedly been rendered obsolete by an ever expanding pluralism in the art world, where all practices and disciplines are purported to be equal and valid. Robert Hughes, however, is one art critic who has delivered a message that must not be ignored.

7.0

Takeda

Oct 21, 2017

Takeda is a film about the universality of the human being seen thru the eyes of a Japanese painter that has adopted the Mexican culture.

7.0

Battlefield Gender

Apr 28, 2019

Both a visit to a very peculiar exhibition at the Bundeswehr Military History Museum in Dresden, Germany, as well as an unprejudiced look at the artistic depiction of violence throughout history and the ways in which that depiction has been gendered.

7.1

Francis Bacon: A Brush with Violence

Jan 28, 2017

In this unique, compelling film, those who knew him speak freely, some for the first time, to reveal the many mysteries of Francis Bacon.

0.0

Bone Wind Fire

Oct 9, 2011

A journey into the hearts, minds and eyes of Georgia O’Keeffe, Emily Carr and Frida Kahlo - three of the 20th century’s most remarkable artists.

8.0

Frans Hals - Maler des Lachens

Jul 14, 2024

Alongside Rembrandt and Vermeer, Frans Hals was one of the key figures in 17th century Dutch art. But unlike his contemporaries, who tended to paint gloomy or pensive pictures, Hals was entirely devoted to joy. He painted people who could barely conceal their zest for life - at a time when it was frowned upon to show teeth.

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0.0

The Sophisticated Misfit

Apr 26, 2007

The Sophisticated Misfit is a long-awaited must-have for fans of the artist Shag and Tiki culture alike. This documentary traces the artist’s roots growing up in Hawaii, his artistic journey in college, his early work designing album covers, to his modern-day role as an art-world phenom. In addition to exclusive footage of Shag painting in his home studio, the film features intimate interviews with the artist, his family, artistic influences, tiki-philes, celebrity collectors, and fans.

0.0

wasted potential

Jun 9, 2025

A documented introspection written, directed, composed, illustrated, and experienced by Riadh Bakache, serving as a transition into a new era for his YouTube channel. Rich in emotion, this piece reflects on his personal experiences and inner journey, supported by his readings. Riadh explores several philosophical and psychological questions about himself, in an effort to better understand and ultimately accept who he is. Taking a step back from his situation became necessary, leading to the telling of his entire journey in this video.

7.7

Clouds Are Not Spheres

Jan 1, 2010

Until recently geometry was 'cold', incapable of describing the irregular shape of a cloud, the slope of a mountain or the beauty of the human body. With fractal geometry, Benoit Mandelbrot gave us a language for our natural world. In this captivating documentary, the man himself explains this groundbreaking discovery.

8.0

A Day on the Grand Canal with the Emperor of China or: Surface Is Illusion But So Is Depth

Mar 18, 1988

Director Philip Haas and artist David Hockney invite you to join them on a magical journey through China via a marvelous 72-foot long 17th-century Chinese scroll entitled The Kangxi Emperor's Southern Inspection Tour (1691-1698), scroll seven . As Hockney unrolls the beautiful and minutely detailed work of art, he traces the Emperor Kangxi’s second tour of his southern empire in 1689.

0.0

Magicians of the Earth: Kings of the Water

Jun 4, 1991

Cyprien Tokoudagba is from the city of Abomey in the Benin Republic of West Africa, where he paints the religious houses of the vodun. Haas and his film crew follow Cyprien as he first paints and then takes part in the ceremony to open a new temple. The paintings include three vodun figures and several emblems, including a pipe and a duck. Cyprien explains his work in the context of the religion and takes the crew to film two other local ceremonies, one where the dead are believed to come back to instruct the living through wild dancing and, another, where women warriors perform their war dances.

10.0

This Week’s Poster - A Klocumentary

Aug 8, 2015

A short documentary about Dave Kloc's weekly poster-making process for The Meltdown with Jonah and Kumail. Filmed during the week of June 24th, 2015.

0.0

Behind the Artist: Andy Warhol, an American Prophet

Jun 19, 2015

This documentary cracks open the meticulously constructed façade of Andy Warhol, exposing the complex figure behind the soup cans and Marilyns. Director Tania Goldenberg traces the transformation of Andrew Warhola, a shy, churchgoing son of Pittsburgh immigrants, into the silver-wigged icon who redefined modern celebrity while deliberately maintaining a lifelong mask. Behind the iconic person...

7.3

Goering's Catalogue: A Collection of Art and Blood

Mar 14, 2021

For more than a decade, Reichsmarschall Hermann Goering, Adolf Hitler's right-hand man during the infamous Third Reich, assembled a collection of thousands of works of art that were meticulously catalogued.

No Image Available

0.0

Collaboration: Ron Padgett

Apr 26, 2016

In 2002, Sophie Constantinou and Bill Weir interviewed Padgett about his life and works, specifically his friendship and collaborations with the New York School of Poets. These moments were captured as part a series of short films catalyzed by Kenward Elmslie. His vision was to illustrate the artistic spirit of and collaborations among American writers, poets and artists from the late 50s to today.

0.0

The Doors of Perception

Jul 9, 2025

Francisco Esteves, an elevator technician, lives between routine and a quiet passion for art. Inspired by the music of The Doors, he reflects on the paths not taken and the dreams that still drive him, in a constant search for meaning and freedom.

7.2

Pictures at an Exhibition

Jan 1, 1996

What does modern art mean for ordinary visitors to an exhibition?

0.0

Moving Together

Feb 11, 2023

Moving Together is a celebratory love letter to music and dance that brims with kinetic life and energy. This documentary explores the intricate collaboration between dancers and musicians, moving seamlessly between Flamenco, Modern, and New Orleans Second Line.

0.0

A.B.

Oct 8, 2023

A documentary-style capturing of the life of Ab, a young struggling artist trying to find her way, all while dealing with unwanted company.

6.0

White Walls Say Nothing

May 2, 2017

Buenos Aires is a complex, chaotic city. It has European style and a Latin American heart. It has oscillated between dictatorship and democracy for over a century, and its citizens have faced brutal oppression and economic disaster. Throughout all this, successive generations of activists and artists have taken to the streets of this city to express themselves through art. This has given the walls a powerful and symbolic role: they have become the city’s voice. This tradition of expression in public space, of art and activism interweaving, has made the streets of Buenos Aires into a riot of colour and communication, giving the world a lesson in how to make resistance beautiful.

Achieving the Unachievable

Overview

Genres

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Achieving the Unachievable Trailers