By Brakhage: An Anthology, Volumes One and Two
Working outside the mainstream, the wildly prolific, visionary Stan Brakhage made more than 350 films over a half century. Challenging all taboos in his exploration of “birth, sex, death, and the search for God,” he turned his camera on explicit lovemaking, childbirth, even autopsy. Many of his most famous works pursue the nature of vision itself and transcend the act of filming. Some, including the legendary Mothlight, were created without using a camera at all, as he pioneered the art of making images directly on film, by drawing, painting, and scratching. With these two volumes, we present the definitive Brakhage collection—fifty-six of his works, from across his career, in high-definition digital transfers.
Films In This Set
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By Brakhage: An Anthology, Volume One
Working completely outside the mainstream, the wildly prolific, visionary Stan Brakhage made more than 350 films over a half century. Challenging all taboos in his exploration of "birth, sex, death, and the search for God," he has turned his camera on explicit lovemaking, childbirth, even autopsy. Many of his most famous works pursue the nature of vision itself and transcend the act of filming. Some, including the legendary Mothlight, were made without using a camera at all, as he pioneered the art of making images directly on film, by drawing, painting, and scratching. Criterion is proud to present twenty-six masterworks by Stan Brakhage.
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By Brakhage: An Anthology, Volume Two
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In Criterion’s first volume of the anthology By Brakhage, we brought twenty-six astonishing works by the avant-garde film pioneer Stan Brakhage to home video for the first time. Now, in this second installment, we are proud to present thirty more of Brakhage’s visionary creations, from 1950s films to his final work, from 2003, curated by his wife, Marilyn Brakhage. Highlights of this collection include the war meditation 23rd Psalm Branch; hand-painted films from Persian Series; The Wonder Ring, made for a commission by Joseph Cornell; the autobiographical Scenes from Under Childhood, Section One; and the found-footage film Murder Psalm.
Special Features
VOLUME ONE (ONE DISC)
- High-definition digital transfers of all twenty-six films, with uncompressed audio for those with sound:
DESISTFILM 1954 • 6 minutes, 48 seconds • 16 mm • Monaural WEDLOCK HOUSE: AN INTERCOURSE 1959 • 10 minutes, 47 seconds • 16 mm • Silent DOG STAR MAN 1961–64 • 74 minutes, 34 seconds • 16 mm • Silent THE ACT OF SEEING WITH ONE’S OWN EYES 1971 • 31 minutes, 50 seconds • 16 mm • Silent CAT’S CRADLE 1959 • 6 minutes, 16 seconds • 16 mm • Silent WINDOW WATER BABY MOVING 1959 • 12 minutes, 11 seconds • 16 mm • Silent MOTHLIGHT 1963 • 3 minutes, 13 seconds • 16 mm • Silent EYE MYTH 1967 • 9 seconds • 16 mm • Silent THE WOLD-SHADOW 1972 • 2 minutes, 24 seconds • 16 mm • Silent THE GARDEN OF EARTHLY DELIGHTS 1981 • 1 minute, 43 seconds • 35 mm • Silent THE STARS ARE BEAUTIFUL 1974 • 18 minutes, 27 seconds • 16 mm • Monaural KINDERING 1987 • 2 minutes, 51 seconds • 16 mm • Monaural I . . . DREAMING 1988 • 6 minutes, 35 seconds • 16 mm • Monaural THE DANTE QUARTET 1987 • 6 minutes, 3 seconds • 35 mm • Silent NIGHT MUSIC 1986 • 30 seconds • 35 mm • Silent RAGE NET 1988 • 35 seconds • 35 mm • Silent GLAZE OF CATHEXIS 1990 • 35 seconds • 35 mm • Silent DELICACIES OF MOLTEN HORROR SYNAPSE 1990 • 8 minutes, 16 seconds • 16 mm • Silent UNTITLED (FOR MARILYN) 1992 • 10 minutes, 27 seconds • 16 mm • Silent BLACK ICE 1994 • 1 minute, 49 seconds • 16 mm • Silent STUDY IN COLOR AND BLACK AND WHITE 1993 • 1 minute, 35 seconds • 16 mm • Silent STELLAR 1993 • 2 minutes, 19 seconds • 16 mm • Silent CRACK GLASS EULOGY 1991 • 6 minutes, 6 seconds • 16 mm • Monaural THE DARK TOWER 1999 • 2 minutes, 19 seconds • 16 mm • Silent COMMINGLED CONTAINERS 1996 • 2 minutes, 42 seconds • 16 mm • Silent LOVESONG 2001 • 10 minutes, 48 seconds • 16 mm • Silent
- Brakhage on Brakhage, four video encounters with the filmmaker
- Audio remarks on selected films by director Stan Brakhage
VOLUME TWO (TWO DISCS)
- New high-definition digital transfers of all thirty films, with uncompressed audio for those with sound:
Disc One Program 1: 1955–67 THE WONDER RING 1955 • 5 minutes, 34 seconds • 16 mm • Silent THE DEAD 1960 • 10 minutes, 21 seconds • 16 mm • Silent TWO: CREELEY/MCCLURE 1965 • 3 minutes, 11 seconds • 16 mm • Silent 23RD PSALM BRANCH 1967 • 63 minutes, 47 seconds • 8 mm • Silent Program 2: 1967–76 SCENES FROM UNDER CHILDHOOD, SECTION ONE 1967 • 23 minutes, 46 seconds • 16 mm • Silent/Monaural THE MACHINE OF EDEN 1970 • 10 minutes, 45 seconds • 16 mm • Silent STAR GARDEN 1974 • 20 minutes, 58 seconds • 16 mm • Silent DESERT 1976 • 10 minutes, 7 seconds • Super 8 mm • Silent Program 3: 1972–82 THE PROCESS 1972 • 8 minutes, 1 second • 16 mm • Silent BURIAL PATH 1978 • 8 minutes, 2 seconds • Super 8 mm • Silent DUPLICITY III 1980 • 22 minutes, 18 seconds • 16 mm • Silent THE DOMAIN OF THE MOMENT 1977 • 14 minutes, 33 seconds • 16 mm • Silent MURDER PSALM 1980 • 16 minutes, 24 seconds • 16 mm • Silent ARABIC 12 1982 • 17 minutes, 1 second • Super 8 mm • Silent Disc Two Program 4: 1989–90 VISIONS IN MEDITATION #1 1989 • 16 minutes, 19 seconds • 16 mm • Silent VISIONS IN MEDITATION #2 (MESA VERDE) 1989 • 16 minutes, 9 seconds •16 mm • Silent VISIONS IN MEDITATION #3 (PLATO’S CAVE) 1990 • 16 minutes, 36 seconds • 16 mm • Monaural VISIONS IN MEDITATION #4 (D. H. LAWRENCE) 1990 • 17 minutes, 41 seconds • 16 mm • Silent Program 5: 1982, 1992, 1994 UNCONSCIOUS LONDON STRATA 1982 • 22 minutes, 15 seconds • Super 8 mm • Silent BOULDER BLUES AND PEARLS AND . . . 1992 • 22 minutes, 24 seconds • 16 mm • Monaural THE MAMMALS OF VICTORIA 1994 • 34 minutes, 9 seconds • 16 mm • Silent FROM: FIRST HYMN TO THE NIGHT—NOVALIS 1994 • 2 minutes, 52 seconds • 16 mm • Silent Program 6: 1995-2003 I TAKE THESE TRUTHS 1995 • 17 minutes, 44 seconds • 16 mm • Silent THE CAT OF THE WORM’S GREEN REALM 1997 • 14 minutes, 10 seconds • 16 mm • Silent YGGDRASILL: WHOSE ROOTS ARE STARS IN THE HUMAN MIND 1997 • 16 minutes, 58 seconds • 16 mm • Silent “. . .” REEL FIVE 1998 • 14 minutes, 6 seconds • 16 mm • Stereo PERSIAN SERIES 1–3 1999 • Total run time: 5 minutes, 54 seconds • 16 mm • Silent CHINESE SERIES 2003 • 2 minutes, 18 seconds • 35 mm • Silent
- Brakhage on Brakhage, three video encounters with the filmmaker
- For Stan, a 2009 short film by Brakhage's wife, Marilyn Brakhage
- Two segments from a 1990 video interview with Brakhage for the Boulder Arts Commission
- Footage from Brakhage’s Sunday salons at the University of Colorado
- Audio recordings of two lectures by Brakhage, one from the Beckwith Lecture Series and one on Gertrude Stein's poem Stanzas in Meditation
- PLUS: A booklet featuring a foreword and program notes by Marilyn Brakhage and film capsules and an essay by Brakhage expert Fred Camper.
New covers by Sarah Habibi
Films In This Set
-
By Brakhage: An Anthology, Volume One
Working completely outside the mainstream, the wildly prolific, visionary Stan Brakhage made more than 350 films over a half century. Challenging all taboos in his exploration of "birth, sex, death, and the search for God," he has turned his camera on explicit lovemaking, childbirth, even autopsy. Many of his most famous works pursue the nature of vision itself and transcend the act of filming. Some, including the legendary Mothlight, were made without using a camera at all, as he pioneered the art of making images directly on film, by drawing, painting, and scratching. Criterion is proud to present twenty-six masterworks by Stan Brakhage.
-
By Brakhage: An Anthology, Volume Two
0
In Criterion’s first volume of the anthology By Brakhage, we brought twenty-six astonishing works by the avant-garde film pioneer Stan Brakhage to home video for the first time. Now, in this second installment, we are proud to present thirty more of Brakhage’s visionary creations, from 1950s films to his final work, from 2003, curated by his wife, Marilyn Brakhage. Highlights of this collection include the war meditation 23rd Psalm Branch; hand-painted films from Persian Series; The Wonder Ring, made for a commission by Joseph Cornell; the autobiographical Scenes from Under Childhood, Section One; and the found-footage film Murder Psalm.
Special Features
VOLUME ONE (ONE DISC)
- High-definition digital transfers of all twenty-six films, with uncompressed audio for those with sound:
DESISTFILM 1954 • 6 minutes, 48 seconds • 16 mm • Monaural WEDLOCK HOUSE: AN INTERCOURSE 1959 • 10 minutes, 47 seconds • 16 mm • Silent DOG STAR MAN 1961–64 • 74 minutes, 34 seconds • 16 mm • Silent THE ACT OF SEEING WITH ONE’S OWN EYES 1971 • 31 minutes, 50 seconds • 16 mm • Silent CAT’S CRADLE 1959 • 6 minutes, 16 seconds • 16 mm • Silent WINDOW WATER BABY MOVING 1959 • 12 minutes, 11 seconds • 16 mm • Silent MOTHLIGHT 1963 • 3 minutes, 13 seconds • 16 mm • Silent EYE MYTH 1967 • 9 seconds • 16 mm • Silent THE WOLD-SHADOW 1972 • 2 minutes, 24 seconds • 16 mm • Silent THE GARDEN OF EARTHLY DELIGHTS 1981 • 1 minute, 43 seconds • 35 mm • Silent THE STARS ARE BEAUTIFUL 1974 • 18 minutes, 27 seconds • 16 mm • Monaural KINDERING 1987 • 2 minutes, 51 seconds • 16 mm • Monaural I . . . DREAMING 1988 • 6 minutes, 35 seconds • 16 mm • Monaural THE DANTE QUARTET 1987 • 6 minutes, 3 seconds • 35 mm • Silent NIGHT MUSIC 1986 • 30 seconds • 35 mm • Silent RAGE NET 1988 • 35 seconds • 35 mm • Silent GLAZE OF CATHEXIS 1990 • 35 seconds • 35 mm • Silent DELICACIES OF MOLTEN HORROR SYNAPSE 1990 • 8 minutes, 16 seconds • 16 mm • Silent UNTITLED (FOR MARILYN) 1992 • 10 minutes, 27 seconds • 16 mm • Silent BLACK ICE 1994 • 1 minute, 49 seconds • 16 mm • Silent STUDY IN COLOR AND BLACK AND WHITE 1993 • 1 minute, 35 seconds • 16 mm • Silent STELLAR 1993 • 2 minutes, 19 seconds • 16 mm • Silent CRACK GLASS EULOGY 1991 • 6 minutes, 6 seconds • 16 mm • Monaural THE DARK TOWER 1999 • 2 minutes, 19 seconds • 16 mm • Silent COMMINGLED CONTAINERS 1996 • 2 minutes, 42 seconds • 16 mm • Silent LOVESONG 2001 • 10 minutes, 48 seconds • 16 mm • Silent
- Brakhage on Brakhage, four video encounters with the filmmaker
- Audio remarks on selected films by director Stan Brakhage
VOLUME TWO (TWO DISCS)
- New high-definition digital transfers of all thirty films, with uncompressed audio for those with sound:
Disc One Program 1: 1955–67 THE WONDER RING 1955 • 5 minutes, 34 seconds • 16 mm • Silent THE DEAD 1960 • 10 minutes, 21 seconds • 16 mm • Silent TWO: CREELEY/MCCLURE 1965 • 3 minutes, 11 seconds • 16 mm • Silent 23RD PSALM BRANCH 1967 • 63 minutes, 47 seconds • 8 mm • Silent Program 2: 1967–76 SCENES FROM UNDER CHILDHOOD, SECTION ONE 1967 • 23 minutes, 46 seconds • 16 mm • Silent/Monaural THE MACHINE OF EDEN 1970 • 10 minutes, 45 seconds • 16 mm • Silent STAR GARDEN 1974 • 20 minutes, 58 seconds • 16 mm • Silent DESERT 1976 • 10 minutes, 7 seconds • Super 8 mm • Silent Program 3: 1972–82 THE PROCESS 1972 • 8 minutes, 1 second • 16 mm • Silent BURIAL PATH 1978 • 8 minutes, 2 seconds • Super 8 mm • Silent DUPLICITY III 1980 • 22 minutes, 18 seconds • 16 mm • Silent THE DOMAIN OF THE MOMENT 1977 • 14 minutes, 33 seconds • 16 mm • Silent MURDER PSALM 1980 • 16 minutes, 24 seconds • 16 mm • Silent ARABIC 12 1982 • 17 minutes, 1 second • Super 8 mm • Silent Disc Two Program 4: 1989–90 VISIONS IN MEDITATION #1 1989 • 16 minutes, 19 seconds • 16 mm • Silent VISIONS IN MEDITATION #2 (MESA VERDE) 1989 • 16 minutes, 9 seconds •16 mm • Silent VISIONS IN MEDITATION #3 (PLATO’S CAVE) 1990 • 16 minutes, 36 seconds • 16 mm • Monaural VISIONS IN MEDITATION #4 (D. H. LAWRENCE) 1990 • 17 minutes, 41 seconds • 16 mm • Silent Program 5: 1982, 1992, 1994 UNCONSCIOUS LONDON STRATA 1982 • 22 minutes, 15 seconds • Super 8 mm • Silent BOULDER BLUES AND PEARLS AND . . . 1992 • 22 minutes, 24 seconds • 16 mm • Monaural THE MAMMALS OF VICTORIA 1994 • 34 minutes, 9 seconds • 16 mm • Silent FROM: FIRST HYMN TO THE NIGHT—NOVALIS 1994 • 2 minutes, 52 seconds • 16 mm • Silent Program 6: 1995-2003 I TAKE THESE TRUTHS 1995 • 17 minutes, 44 seconds • 16 mm • Silent THE CAT OF THE WORM’S GREEN REALM 1997 • 14 minutes, 10 seconds • 16 mm • Silent YGGDRASILL: WHOSE ROOTS ARE STARS IN THE HUMAN MIND 1997 • 16 minutes, 58 seconds • 16 mm • Silent “. . .” REEL FIVE 1998 • 14 minutes, 6 seconds • 16 mm • Stereo PERSIAN SERIES 1–3 1999 • Total run time: 5 minutes, 54 seconds • 16 mm • Silent CHINESE SERIES 2003 • 2 minutes, 18 seconds • 35 mm • Silent
- Brakhage on Brakhage, three video encounters with the filmmaker
- For Stan, a 2009 short film by Brakhage's wife, Marilyn Brakhage
- Two segments from a 1990 video interview with Brakhage for the Boulder Arts Commission
- Footage from Brakhage’s Sunday salons at the University of Colorado
- Audio recordings of two lectures by Brakhage, one from the Beckwith Lecture Series and one on Gertrude Stein's poem Stanzas in Meditation
- PLUS: A booklet featuring a foreword and program notes by Marilyn Brakhage and film capsules and an essay by Brakhage expert Fred Camper.
New covers by Sarah Habibi
