"Things aren’t always what they seem." The saying is simple and cliche, but it is a sentiment people can be quick to forget.
Perhaps this is why Mark Landis, a man who passes off forged art as real to museums around the country, is so successful in his particular line of work.
On Thursday, Feb. 4, at 5:00 p.m, "Art and Craft," a documentary about Landis and his real-life foil, Matthew Leininger, a registrar who makes it his mission to put an end to Landis’ hijinks, will screen at the Jule Collins Smith Museum as part of the Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers film series.
"Art and Craft" delves deeper into Landis’ world, and subsequently his mind, showing how he creates replicas of famous pieces of art and gives them, in an act of what he describes as philanthropy, to unsuspecting museums for free, sometimes dressed as a grieving family member carrying out a loved ones’ will, others as a priest.
Meanwhile, "Art and Craft" shows the other side of the story in Leininger, who, along with other museum curators and art lovers, call for an end to Landis’ act.
Jennifer Grausman, one of the documentary’s co-directors, who will be present at the screening Thursday night, said the characters Landis and Leininger are a big part of what makes "Art and Craft" so compelling, at least to the film’s three co-directors.
“I think what drew us to the story was … the very unusual circumstances of the story and … once we started to get to know the characters, Mark Landis and Matt Leininger, that’s when it really drew us in …We just wanted to follow them and see where they took us,” Grausman said.
Combine great characters with a good dose of humor — which the film supplies, according to Grausman — and the product is a documentary that feels more fiction than fact.
“It is unusual for a documentary in that it feels like a fiction film,” Grausman said. “I think even people who aren’t that interested in documentaries should see this crazy story unfold.”
Although on its surface, "Art and Craft" is, as it describes on its website, “a cat-and-mouse art caper, rooted in questions of authorship and authenticity,” the film delves deeper, presenting questions on “the universal need for community, appreciation, and purpose.”
Grausman has been pleased with the varied questions the documentary has sparked in its viewers.
“Most people have said that it really makes them think, and what they think about is different for every person, which has been great because we wanted the movie to kind of pose a lot of questions and cause discussion,” Grausman said.
Scott Bishop, curator of education and university liaison at the museum, encourages students to come out to the screening and take advantage of one of her favorite programs the museum has to offer.
“I think it is a really good opportunity for our Auburn students to get to not only see good indie films, but to see how films are made and talk to people who have made films,” Bishop said.
Tickets to the event are free and can be found here.
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