GalleryBeat Creator Leads Discussion About Film

November 5, 2009

As part of the screening of Guest of Cindy Sherman, at the Palmer Museum of Art, Paul H-O, founder of GalleryBeat and director of the film, will introduce and lead a question and answer session after the screening at 11:30 a.m., Tuesday, November 10, in the Palmer Lipcon Auditorium, Palmer Museum of Art, on the Penn State University Park campus. The Penn State School of Visual Arts’ John M. Anderson Visiting Artists and Scholars Lecture Series and the Film, Video, and Media Studies Department in the College of Communications co-sponsor H-O’s participation.

Guest of Cindy Sherman takes an eye-opening look at what happens when a skeptical outsider finds himself romantically involved with the ultimate insider. Filmed over 15 years and including interviews with a veritable who’s who of the art and entertainment world, the film paints a vivid picture of the New York art scene that is also a witty, illuminating look at celebrity, male anxiety and art.

Paul H-O became a fixture of the New York art scene in the 1990s with his public access show GalleryBeat. Armed with a video camera, he attended art gallery openings, giving his candid assessments of the artists’ work. He met and began a relationship with Cindy Sherman, a press-shy artist who has been called one of the world’s most gifted visual talents. The idea for the film came from his personal experiences in his role as Cindy’s guest at the celebrity-studded openings and dinners she regularly attended.

Contact: Contact: Ann Shostrom, ams26@psu.edu