George Segal: American Still Life

Best remembered for his three-dimensional, plaster-cast figures of men and women, often captured performing the mundane tasks of everyday life, the late George Segal's works are meant to be walked in and around, while the viewer ponders the "unfathomable" mysteries of daily events. Recruiting friends for models, Segal's pieces vary from a cluster of "commuters" at a bus station, or the passion of a tableaux of Holocaust victims, to the historical recreation of a bread line at the new FDR memorial in Washington, or a scene of gay men mingling in a public square. In this video, the artist recounts the influence of his immigrant parents and the Great Depression, his love of drawing, his discovery of the creative uses of plaster, and his eternal frustration of trying to make art while making a living teaching art and running a chicken farm. Placing Segal within the context of the pop and commercial art explosion of the '60s, this documentary frames the artistic debate: is Segal a "three dimensional Edward Hopper" or merely the creator of "lifeless effigies"? Segal himself says he's simply "a man speaking to other people." Sadly, Segal died in 2000 and this may be the reason for the video's overly abrupt conclusion. Otherwise, this fine documentary is highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (S. Rees)