"Early Abstractions" (1946-57), Pt. 1

Short animations by Harry Smith.
No. 1: A Strange Dream (l946)
No. 2: Message from the Sun (1946-48)
No. 3: Interwoven (1947-49) (Part 1)

[@dopaminecloud]

thanks for making it harry

[@ciscornBIG]

Wow. Really enjoyed this. Thanks for posting!

[@alpswissart]

great the combination of sound and visualisation in abstraction.

[@emtube9298]

Harry was really out there, or really in there, whichever. Thanks for uploading this. Mighty impressive.

[@SeanBoke]

Everyone should check out the website for the Harry Smith Archives. If you have a chance to see any of his films on film... do it.

[@seintzeit]

oh thanks, an art professional...just what harry loved.

[@seintzeit]

early years with automatism and so forth its very unique (these days every serious young painter in new york knows who forrest bess is); think alfred jensen; also, a good deal of what is being done in abstract painting after modernism relates more to what harry was doing than to early modernism; contemporary painters like chris martin and so forth; also, what's rather wonderful these

[@anniewang7295]

OMG! Thank you for posting this video. I am so happy to see it, it's so beautiful!, The color, the music, etc , I felt the nature and the mystery spiritual in it, and it's almost made me cry....I love it very much! it's really really great!

[@seintzeit]

days is that the prevailing narratives of modernism (traditional art historical ones) are sort of breaking open and marginal figures (at least as far as the narratives go) are suddenly refiguring into a new

[@SABRENOSE]

Just found out about this guy today and Kenneth Anger...great goodness

[@KevinBrownsvideos]

REALLY COOL!

[@Thissiteisapain]

Amazing abstract!

[@zerojeanli]

You can see #3 Interwoven by Harry Smith on a fine DVD compilation called Treasures of the American Archives IV

[@seintzeit]

days is that thse traditioanl narratives are kind of breaking open these days and so called outsiders like harry are forming a new precedence; harry produced a huge body of interdisiplinary work; his scholarly work on

[@seintzeit]

there are historical precedents to what harry was doing of course in Russian and Italian modernisms, but it was also something very different; think of forrest bess and his (non)relation to surrealism or to what the abstract expressionists were doing in their

[@texpeare]

This movie is part of the National Film Archive in Washington and is now in the public domain. Parts 6, 8, & 9 were lost due to neglect. Not sure if you can buy it on dvd. Amazon doesn't have it.

[@Nathan007able]

@Dtchmastrkilla7 All I know is that H used "Meet the Beatles" for his initial showings and then was warned to unuse them by Beatle people who warned he'd be sued. I recall at a screening he explained, "I was talked into using the Beatles and I regret it". This was in the mid-seventies at the Anthology.

[@tompeters2133]

Mystic Fire Video put this music on because there wasn't any expensive royalties like there would've been for any of the music harry picked to play with this, he said if a movie is rhythmically great any music should work.

[@orsaandy1]

the mind is beautiful

[@SirSwiftusFunkellwerk]

great!!

[@dstrobel3]

I think the music is Moondog's song with the Queen Mary or some such large ship in NY harbor....pax doug

[@hknuddv]

I wonder if Fischinger was acquainted with the Work of Albert Hoffman? ;) This is demonstrative of the way the avant-garde of the present seeps through layers of acceptability and morphs into the familiar artistic concepts of the future. You can almost see the way this work seeps through the consciousness of artists over the decades and ends up as a major, yet indirect influence on familiar ideas in music videos and graphic equalisation today. Amazing work, far ahead of its time! :)

[@cvmprograms167]

Not clear from your comment if you realize, this film was made by Harry Smith, not Fischinger

[@slobomotion]

Yes, I worked for AFA distributing this and the Beatles worked best. I loved Harry.

[@sclogse1]

I know this is hand painting directly on film, but how Harry got continuity, the evolution of forms and movement from cell to cell is just a huge mystery to me....

[@earinsound]

@hectorbacan2008 the films are originally silent... the music on here is by Teiji Ito (husband of filmmaker Maya Deren)

[@moxie96]

why can't you be sober or unassisted to watch these films? Is it some unwritten law that when you see something like this you gotta say one was or should be on something to take it as something great? Somebody please either say I'm crazy or explain it to me. I love all these kinds of films and I'm happily watching it unaided in any form!

[@ViRiXDreamcore]

This is quite strange. So this is where we get all our REZ type stuff. Hm.

[@ChrisRileyMusicUK]

Fuggin' hell. This stuff sells for £25 a pop at The Baltic. James Alley Blues to follow...

[@sunnyshokrae]

@annemarie326 if you get the anthology of american folk music box set, they are included.

[@MightySaturn5]

@MVillani1985 I agree however Marijuana does increase imagination, determination and patience so from that vantage point it might have been used however it seems most creative types are wired that way, anyway I appreciate the information and have a wonderful day/evening.

[@januklatushka]

it exists only on VHS someone made a digitized copy but didnt share!

[@bpwonderkid]

@SABRENOSE If you don't already know who Stan Brakhage is you might like him too.

[@ar_xiv]

@annemarie326 vhs please woah that would look so good

[@germboy123]

is this the original sound track ment for all the films?

[@MVillani1985]

@MightySaturn5 I know this was meant as a joke but actually it was. In the 20s a lot of people smoked weed, they called them "party cigarettes" and were sold in brighty coloured wrappers, but it's not a psychedelic drug, so it wouldn't have resulted in a video like this.

[@Eyegooth]

@moxie96 hey, you bring up a good point, You don't need to be under drugs to appreciate these types of films. They're surreal and amazing without any influences. And the amount of work put into them is phenomenal. however, the director and creator of these films, Harry Smith, was supper high making them. The creator was high, and made these films as a result. they were born under the influence of drugs and alcohol, so it only does the films and the director justice to watch them high. try it.

[@madthrasher86]

i feel hipster when i watch this

[@PlzEnjoiSkating]

was harry smith also a musician?

[@VinceAlvare]

teiji ito...i don't know where to find the audio tracks

[@drumjunkie10]

the music is ILL

[@sietenova]

HARRY SMITH???

[@MightySaturn5]

Obviously Marijuana was obtainable if needed in 46'

[@Dtchmastrkilla7]

Does anyone know the music selection for this particular edition of there videos? I know that the soundtracks were changes on numerous occasions...

[@qiyamat93]

it's a Teiji Ito piece.....I don't know the name. I think Tzaddik Records put out his LP with this track on it, called AXIS MUNDI

[@Moss_pitt]

Any1 know a way to download these videos?

[@ChristopherSobieniak]

"The music is ILL" The music isn't too bad, though for years, Harry used to run with set to music from the "Meet The Beatles!" LP.

[@willieluncheonette]

It might have had a very early jazz soundtrack, but yes, Harry seemed to settle on the Beatles when he showed it in public. Maybe he drew these films listening to or with a certain tempo in his mind and the Beatles fit this tempo.

[@ChristopherSobieniak]

willieluncheonette I bet.

[@SABRENOSE]

@bpwonderkid Yea I know him but Dog Star Man is a little dense for me

[@AngryPeasant86]

Film cells and biological cells come to mind.

[@weaselidiotu]

@moxie96 you're not crazy moxie, chill out..

[@atwaterpub]

life is too short.

[@sunnyshokrae]

@annemarie326 woah... just realized your comment was three years old :/

[@freestyletrickers]

fary

[@CopiaMan]

cine

[@dusteroo]

@annemarie326 download the youtube file