The Dolls of Lisbon

Never heard of The Antagonist Art Movement until I became aware of Ethan H Minsker and read his book "Barstool Prophets." (a gem, by the way, which caused me to invest in his first book "Rich Boy Cries For Mamma.") A posse of passionate renegades antagonizing others into making art. Turns out the dude makes a lot of films too, about art and music and all the things I cant get enough of. "The Dolls of Lisbon" follows some party-loving artists to various parts of the globe especially Lisbon where they interact with local artists who have decorated, created, painted canvas & wire dolls that Ethan sewed together in his NYC home. The trip culminates in a wildly successful art festival. These dolls on the prowl are incredible, you will want to make one, too! The film is about art, who is making it, the movement, the creative process, the organizing & promoting of a festival and it is all juxtaposed into one fast, fun gumbo, visually delightful and sonically pleasing and uber cool. Get on it!

The idea is simple enough, show the world the true life of the artist. There are a million ways that one could have gone about making a film like this. Ethan Minsker however chose a somewhat unusual tool to bring this film and message to life, a lanky canvas doll.

Bend and cut some wire, bandage bloodied cuts, wrap in fluffing, cut up canvas and sew on new skin. These were the ingredients to create the star and instrument of this film, The Doll. By sending these ingenious works of art around the world to different artists The Antagonists have created a truly unique show. Each piece as drastically different as it's creator, but all began as the same plain canvas figure.

This is a must see journey for artists of all types.

It's a hard thing to follow your passion and do what you love, especially when it is seldom financially rewarded. "The Dolls of Lisbon", inspired by the Zapatista Doll figures of Mexico, is an intimate look at the struggling artist in New York City and around the world put together by The Antagonist Movement of NYC. This massive worldwide art project about a small doll with a big idea behind it brings so many lone souls together, and gives you a look at a world that few experience. It is also interesting to find out what so many different minds envision when they look at these blank canvas figures, and how different the end products vary. The great score, 8mm film and stop motion sequences make this a truly unique film about a passionate group of people.

An impressive massive undertaking that spanned multiple countries. This group shed literal blood to show the world what it means to be an artist. Too many people care about the end result of the artistic process. With this movie The Antagonists show the viewer the complete opposite, the arduous journey.

This film is not about a flashy commercial artist's life like Andy Warhol. Instead it follow the not as glorious group of people that have to work and fight for all they have, which most of the time does not wield financial rewards but supplies something that money can't. I am truly envious of this groups trip.

This movie follows the mounting of an international art project spearheaded by the art group, The Antagonist Movement. It features interviews with artists of multiple national backgrounds who all have at least one thing in common - the overwhelming drive to make art, even at the cost of a more traditional and predictable life.

The project itself is fascinating - The Antagonist Movement sent blank canvas dolls to artists all over the world with the instructions to change them however they wanted to. The results are wildly different, and show a wide variety of artistic visions. It's a must see for all artists and art lovers, and it also features an awesome soundtrack.