This film closes on Thursday, August 14th.

Vivian Maier was born in New York in 1926, and spent most of her youth in France. She returned to America to work as a nanny, and took photographs. Over the next five decades, Maier would accumulate over 100,000 negatives, most of them shot in Chicago and New York City. This massive body of work would only be revealed to the world when a box was bought at a thrift auction in Chicago in 2007, a discovery that would lead to Maier being celebrated as an artist who could stand comparisons to Berenice Abbott or Weegee, a significant chronicler of American life in the second half of the 20th century.

John Maloof and Charlie Siskel’s involving documentary questions why it was that Maier’s genius was not recognised sooner, piecing together a biography from fragments left behind. It’s an intense dream of a life, a provocative insight into loneliness, mental illness and creativity.

IFI IRISH SHORT
These screenings will be preceded by the IFB-funded short animation, Coda, by Alan Holly. Coda won Best Animated Short Film at the prestigious South by Southwest (SXSW) film festival this year. A lost soul stumbles drunkenly through the city. In a park, Death finds him and shows him many things. (9 minutes, Ireland, 2013.)

This film will feature as part of July’s FREE film club meeting, The Critical Take, on Monday, July 28th (18.30). This club is open to all so please join us to chat about this film and more! Simply collect your free ticket at the IFI Box Office.

Don’t forget we now schedule weekly.

★★★★★ Entertainment.ie ★★★★ The Irish Times ★★★★ The Guardian