art of failure

This is the unusual story of the rise and fall of Chuck Connelly, in the 1980s a major upcoming talent in the New York art scene along with Julian Schnabel and Jean-Michel Basquiat. Connelly ended up alienating every collector and gallery owner he worked with. This documentary follows the life of this painter who now sees his career fading. Driven by desperation, and left by his wife during the course of this film, Connelly hires an actor to pose as a young, upcoming artist to sell Chuck's work to galleries and art dealers. The film provides an intimate and often troubling character study of Connelly, a working-class guy from Pittsburgh who holds "traditional" beliefs that art is about personal expression and craftsmanship. Shot over six years, this dramatic and entertaining documentary explores a painter's passion for his work, despite being his own worst enemy.