FILM 9: CIVILIZATION / COLLINGS

Matthew Collings is an art critic, artist, and writer. Collings attended school at Byam Shaw School of Art and Goldsmith’s College.  We should believe Collings because he is an educated art critic and artist himself. He hosts the series “This is Modern Art” which he won awards for, and has also written and hosted various TV programs and books on art.

Collings chose to discuss a wide range of art history probably because he wanted the audience to have some sort of background so that they understood the period of art that Goya and David were a part of. I think it is important to see this because it will help the audience further understand the work that these two artists created. His point was to just give background and a further explanation of the period so that the audience was not left to make their own assumptions. Also, Collings stated that events like the French Revolution inspired these artists, and that is important to include as well, especially for David because he painted propaganda for the Revolution.

Collings uses history and his own narration to tell his stories. He has to use history as a part of the storytelling because if he did not give background, the audience may not understand the entire film. Many people are unaware of Goya and David’s background and inspiration, so this is necessary information to include. Also, within the element of history he compared the work and motivation of David and Goya. Collings was the first of the storytellers to talk about two artists in one film, which was interesting. Like Hughes, Collings did not have reenactments or other dramatic elements. In Collings’ case, this made the film a little dull in my opinion. He was not my favorite storyteller. Hughes, however, got away with not using many elements that the other storytellers used, which I liked. Hughes is still my favorite storyteller because of the passion he has for Goya and his straightforward delivery of information.

The image I think my generation will be represented is the iPhone. We are a technology thriving generation and the iPhone is really what started this revolution. Ever since the creation of the iPhone, other technologies have increased as well. This will say that our generation is extremely intelligent and adaptive, but also beginning to lack in social abilities. We are becoming more reliant on technology and that is not always a positive quality. It is a truly bittersweet thing. There are so many helpful products in medicine and communication, but we are often harmed by the fact that we no longer have as much face-to-face communication. Future civilizations will see this and note it as the change from being a very social civilization to a more isolated, technology focused civilization.



Question: What was the most beneficial element of Collings’ storytelling techniques as compared to the other narrators thus far? Do you like that he does not use reenactments or do you think he should include them?