“The Palm at the End of the Mind: A Visit with Michele Oka Doner” Wandering Eye Studios

Author/critic Alastair Gordon visits the Soho, NYC studio of artist Michele Oka Doner and learns about her work process as well as her love of poetry. Michele leads Alastair to the far end of her 5,000-square-foot loft--a former button factory--past a labyrinth of prehistoric fossils, beehives, nests, shells, gnarly roots, and other kinds of organic matter that serve as both her medium and her inspiration. She stops in front of a monumental fifty-by-fifty-foot pen-and-ink drawing that resembles a giant honeycomb. Michele tells Alastair about the giant banyan tree that grew near her childhood home on Miami Beach. She played in the acre-wide tree as a young girl, and it became her secret hiding place. Over the years, the artist made many return visits to the majestic tree as it continues to provide a mysterious source of inspiration in her work and her life. Michele began work on her almost two-mile-long installation at the Miami International Airport in 1990. The piece is called “A Walk on the Beach,” and it depicts a variety of sea creatures, plankton, coral, seaweed, and other aquatic organisms that were cast in bronze and set into the terrazzo flooring. The entire project took two decades to complete, and every year, more than 40 million people walk across this expansive work of art. Today’s video visit is titled "The Palm at the End of the Mind, "after a 1954 poem by Wallace Stevens, who composed it while wintering in Key West.
Host: Alastair Gordon
Guest Michel Oka Doner
Video: Michael Inglesh
Music: William Cepeda
Produced/Directed/Edited by: Alastair Gordon & Michael Inglesh
© Wandering Eye Studios / Gordon de Vries Studio

[@AnnieFinchPoet]

beautiful and inspiring!! so glad 'tis b&w.

[@vocalchords3609]

Loved every minute!

[@OverItwithMichaelInglesh]

It was absolutely magical to be part of this.

[@robinhillphoto]

Beautiful film of an extraordinary artist and I love the voice of the narrator! Great stuff… keep it coming!

[@gilliangordon9834]

Beautiful, fascinating film!

[@gilliangordon9834]

Beautiful❤❤