Tribeca Review: ‘Con Artist’

I have said it a few times now but I will say it again. Of the documentaries that I saw at Tribeca this year, this was my favorite. Perhaps it has something to do with it being labeled a docu-comedy, which it is. Perhaps it is because Mark Kostabi is an absolutely fascinating subject for a documentary, which he is. Perhaps it is because Con Artist is a brilliant, funny and interesting look into an intriguing artist’s life and the art world around him. Or perhaps I’ve just been conned.

Michael Sladek’s film follows artist Mark Kostabi and features many interviews with those around him. I had never heard of Kostabi, nor have I seen his paintings before. It was great learning about his rise to popularity in the 80’s. He was and is a man of gimmicks. He does not paint his paintings. His studio, called Kostabi World, is full of assistants and painters who do that for him. He does not come up with the concepts for the paintings. His employees do that also. He does not even name his paintings. He has a game show called Title This with a studio audience where art critics and minor celebrities name the paintings for prizes. He does sign his paintings though. Sometimes in the presence of the artist who painted it, which makes for interesting footage in this doc.

You can tell that Mark Kostabi loves the camera. He is very open and willing to tell all when the cameras are rolling. He reveals his feelings, his secrets and tries his best to be interesting to watch. He is a publicity whore, craving to be seen and talked about in media. I am sure he is reading and loving this review right now. He has the persistence and the personality to pull it off. At one point, he even mentions that his statements about art being all business and other early rants were just an act to get attention. He had a smart way about manipulating media and standing out from the crowd. It is what made him so successful and what makes this documentary such a fun viewing.

I like the framework of the film for the most part. The talking head interviews work very well to reveal different views from people who know or in some cases knew Mark. The source footage is great and one of my favorite scenes in the film is a young Kostabi telling a couple who recently paid a lot of money for his painting that he did not even paint it. The only problem I seemed to have with the film is that towards the end, the structure seemed to unglue a little. There are a few instances where the scenes fades and it could have ended but then we fade in on another scene. I think the ending scenes are great and I in no way feel the film should be any shorter, I am just saying it would be better if they were integrated into the film a little more. This is just a minor fault.

Overall, Con Artist is a funny, entertaining and intriguing documentary about my new favorite artist.  

Jerry Cavallaro – www.AreYouStuckLikeChuck.com