Crammed with interviews, videos, and discussions, we are offered a dizzying tour through the 1980s queer art scene, from the late 1970s through the devastating AIDS outbreak and beyond. But, at all times, Vincent ensures Brezinski sits centre stage in Make Me Famous, playing at OUTshine.
Who was Edward Brezinski? It’s a good question; after all, his name does not immediately come to mind when discussing the Lower East Side art scene in New York during the 1980s.
If I were to ask you which artists exemplify the rebellious, queer, and outcast profile of New York’s art scene from the late 1970s, you would undoubtedly list Keith Haring, David Wojnarowicz, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Robert Mapplethorpe, and Jeff Koons. However, among these names was that of a painter, Edward Brezinski. Yet, like many artists, Brezinski never found the recognition or fame he desired. Instead, he faded into the background as the art scene became financially driven, his expressionist work largely sidelined and ignored until now.
But what makes Edward Brezinski so interesting? Was it his rebellious consumption of a preserved doughnut exhibited by Robert Gober? Or maybe it was his strange death in a Cannes hotel that led many to speculate he was, in fact, still alive. While these stories are fascinating, the interest lies in an ever-changing art scene and a talent that never reached the dizzy heights of the art world. It’s the story of an artist who tried and tried again but never captured the zeitgeist of the time – his work only hung in the prestigious MoMA galleries long after he died in 2007. In other words, it is the story of many artists who fail to find the fame they seek, despite their talent.
Director Brian Vincent’s portrait of Brezinski is wrapped in the celebrated New York art scene of the time. Here, we are provided with home videos shot at Brezinski’s derelict Lower East Side apartment as we explore the very nature of artistic fame. Unlike many previous documentaries, this allows Make Me Famous to celebrate the famed 80s art scene of New York while dissecting its destructive influence on individuals as some rose to the top, only for others to be left behind.
Crammed with interviews, videos, and discussions, we are offered a dizzying tour through the 1980s queer art scene, from the late 1970s through the devastating AIDS outbreak and beyond. But, at all times, Vincent ensures Brezinski sits centre stage in Make Me Famous, as we are asked to reconsider his artistic impact and his role in creating the 80s art scene that ultimately shunned him.
Make Me Famous is a melancholic yet vibrant exploration of a man who never gave up on his dream but was never taken seriously by his peers. Brezinski would find solace in alcohol and paint as he continually attempted to find the missing piece to his artistic jigsaw, even travelling to Berlin in the early 90s. But that missing piece of the jigsaw was to escape him until his apparent death in France.
Interviews with artists and art dealers, ranging from Walter Robinson to Annina Nosei and Sur Rodney Sur, discuss his charisma, presence, and grit, while also highlighting how his work didn’t fit the time. There remains a sense of snobbery and cruelty in many of their words in an art scene embedded in big money, instant judgment, and failure.
So, to return to my original question, who was Edward Brezinski? The answer is complicated. He was a talented artist who never received the attention he deserved. However, he was also a mysterious figure who drank excessively and could be volatile. More than anything, he was an artist with a dream who didn’t have the ruthless business credentials to make it big, and sadly, that’s why so few of us have heard of him.
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