Watching "Finding Vivian Maier" at The Cremorne Orpheum

I went to see "Finding Vivian Maier" with Sue last night.  A fascinating documentary about a nanny who, when she died, left behind a legacy of over 100,000 undeveloped photos.  When they were developed, they turned out to contain some of the greatest street photographs ever taken.  I've put some of her photos up on a separate post.

The movie made me want to grab my camera and start snapping.  Very inspiring. So I scratched that itch a little by taking a couple of snaps of the beautiful Cremorne Orpheum Cinema, my favourite local cinema, where we saw the movie.  It's a beautiful cinema with stunning art deco finishings. 

Email to Colin about the movie

Wow Colin, thanks for some great thought provoking reflections. Inspired me to think about it more deeply.

I can only project her motivations from my own experience so am probably way off base as I realise we're not all the same.

But anyway, for what it's worth, I have this often overwhelming compulsion to record moments from my life. It's the motivation behind my blog and more. It's not just an enjoyment thing, but deeper than that.  A way of gaining some sense of "control" and "order" over life which is inherently messy and chaotic and unpredictable.

Maybe she had some kind of similar urge?  Except not just moments from her own life but moments from the wider world around her. Might also explain her obsession with collecting newspapers and clippings and video footage and receipts and memories wrapped up in trinkets etc. etc. ?

She may not have had a strong urge to develop and show the photos because once captured, the "moments" were safe and secure and stored for posterity in her film cartons and boxes.  Her sense of "control" was gained through the capture itself, not the editing and presentation of the results.

Whatever her motivation, I don't think she had any choice in the matter. She was driven by a creative impulse that drove her; something greater operating through her, as it does through so many artists, especially the truly great and original ones.

One of my takeaways?  Obsessive tendencies, even if driven by inner demons, aren't necessarily all bad and can even have their gifts. If harnessed, they can be a catalyst to create something remarkable. An extreme example: Would Van Gogh have ever created Starry Night if his soul had been all perfume and light?

Cheers,
G