Documentary captures portrait of local artist as man
By Alexandra Hazlett
May 15, 2008
In the first documentary to chronicle David Hostetler’s entire life and career, “David Hostetler: The Last Dance” presents a portrait of the artist in his eighties, and illuminates the process of creation of his latest work, The Last Dance.
A professor emeritus at Ohio University, Hostetler has been an artist for over 60 years, working mainly in bronze sculpting and wood carving, and focusing on the female form. He is one of the best, if not the best American sculptor, said Producer Keith Newman. The documentary focuses more on Hostetler the person, and his wife Susan Crehan Hostetler, than Hostetler the artist.
“More than the art, it’s his personality. He’s an iconoclast; he’s got a hell of a personality. My intent was to focus on Dave the individual. It took us awhile to figure out that’s what we were doing, but that’s what we did,” said Newman. Both he and Hostetler referred to the film as a “memoir.”
The film is the first time that Hostetler’s work has been captured on High Definition Video, and the most major documentary about him, covering nearly his entire life and career. It also includes film footage from “Art Park” a counter culture experiment that Hostetler was instrumental in establishing in Athens in the late 60s and early 70s.
He became an artist when, after being wounded in World War II, Hostetler received art supplies in the hospital from the Red Cross. After his release, he attended several art schools because, he said, there were so many veterans that “no one took roll – you just walked in.” He received his degree from Indiana University at Bloomingfield, after a letter from his father intending to get him into engineering at Purdue was sent to IU instead. It was two years before Hostetler’s father knew his son was in art school. IU did not have an engineering program, but was home to a high caliber art school often frequented by visiting European artists who had left Europe because of the Nazi occupation.
More than 25 museums and galleries showcase Hostetler’s works, including the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Mass. and the Butler Institute of American Art in Youngstown, Ohio. His piece The Duo resides in a park at Trump International Hotel & Tower in New York City.
The piece, made of rough bronze, depicts two figures side-by-side appearing to grow out of the ground and touching at the torso. It deals with the idea of partnering, the artist said. Hostetler explained that the idea of partnering is always very frightening.
“You have to fuse two people to get one,” he said.
While commercial success and the ability to support himself on his art did not come until relatively late in his career, Hostetler was not discouraged.
“If it’s your passion, then that’s what you do. I tried commercial art for a year; it’s no fun,” he said.
Music for the film was written and produced by Eric Arvai and Andre Gribou, a professor in the Music Department at Ohio University. The David Hostetler Band performed additional music, with the artist himself on drums.
Keith Newman, who produced the film, is also an Academic Professional in the School of Telecommunications at OU. In addition to production classes, he developed a class in Television and Film Comedy. Newman has produced and hosted “Below the Salt,” for WOUB and Online Service for the past 32 years.
Director Casey Hayward has worked in the industry for more than five years, and received his Masters of Fine Arts degree in Film and Television from Savannah College of Art and Design, in Georgia. He provided the artistic vision for the film.
“Most people only talk about the talent and the producer, but he [Hayward] really did the aesthetic work of the film,” Newman said.
“David Hostetler: The Last Dance” will be shown privately on May 18, at the Baker Center Theatre. Production crew, donors and researches have been invited to attend, and the creators will announce public screens at a later date. The film, according to the press release, will be sold on DVD this summer.
The documentary, which has a 68-minute running time, was produced by Too Much Media, LLC. Support for the film came from private donors, and production assistance was obtained from many Ohio University departments, including the School of Media Arts and Studies, the School of Visual Communication, the School of Film, and the History and Dance departments.
Hostetler and his wife, live outside of Athens on a 40-acre farm. In the summer months they live in Nantucket, Mass. where the couple owns a gallery.
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