Movie review: “Herb & Dorothy”
From Friday’s Weekend Look section of The Oklahoman. 3 of 4 stars with extra encouragement for art lovers to see the film and then check out the related exhibit.
Film profiles collectors behind donated artwork
The story rings like pure cinematic gold: Dorothy and Herbert Vogel, a New York couple of modest means, over 30 years parlayed their passion for art into a world-class collection of contemporary works.
With her documentary “Herb & Dorothy,” director Megumi Sasaki tells the tale in engaging, straightforward fashion, wisely keeping the focus on her loveable, shining stars. But the first-time filmmaker doesn’t fully cash in on the treasure trove of insights her subjects could offer.
“Herb & Dorothy” is screening today-Sunday at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art, one of 50 institutions around the country chosen to receive 50 works from the vast Vogel collection. The exhibit “The Dorothy and Herbert Vogel Collection: Fifty Works for Fifty States” is on view at the museum.
Married in 1962, Herb and Dorothy Vogel visited the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., on their honeymoon. They started taking art classes, painting and frequenting galleries. They eventually turned their attention from creating art to collecting it.
Dorothy, a librarian, and Herb, a postal worker, couldn’t afford works by established artists, so they focused on up-and-comers, particularly those working in minimalist and conceptual art. They befriended many artists and became fixtures on New York’s art scene.
The couple lived on Dorothy’s salary and used Herb’s paycheck to buy art, limiting their purchases to small-scale works that would fit in their tiny one-bedroom Manhattan apartment.
Not only were they obsessive about collecting – their collection ultimately grew to more than 4,000 works – the Vogels were uncannily skilled at recognizing talent on the verge. They were early supporters of many renowned artists, including Christo and Jeanne-Claude, Robert and Sylvia Mangold, Chuck Close and Richard Tuttle.
These artists, along with relatives, art critics and curators from the National Gallery, are among those interviewed in the documentary. Sasaki’s obtained impressive access to sources and the couple’s eccentric art- and pet-crammed apartment.
In the early 1990s, after years of steadfastly refusing to sell any of their collection, the Vogels transferred it to the National Gallery, largely as a gift to the institution. The process of moving these works, which covered virtually every surface of their apartment, is worth the price of admission alone.
The Vogels are charming subjects whose love of the art lights up the screen. The couple repeatedly claims they just collected the art they liked, but Sasaki misses a golden opportunity to dig deeper into why such challenging artistic movements were so appealing to these relatable collectors.
A sequel about the “Fifty Works for Fifty States” is planned, and it certainly will be a worthwhile project, just for offering the chance to spend more time with Dorothy and Herb.
Now playing
“Herb & Dorothy”
Where: Oklahoma City Museum of Art, 415 Couch Drive.
When: 5:30 p.m. today and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday.
Information: 236-3100 or www.okcmoa.com/film.
- BAM
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