SYNOPSIS
The old farmhouses and surrounding rural areas of North Garden, Virginia, are obvious influences in the subject matter of John Borden Evans' paintings. Evans depicts rural landscapes and animals in his thickly painted works, creating texture through build-up and scrape away techniques. Evans has exhibited at the Chrysler Museum, the Virginia Museum, and the Arlington Arts Center as well as in galleries in North Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, and Washington, DC.
John Borden Evans works year-round in his atelier in North Garden, Va. where we discussed for the first time the idea of a documentary film about his work. The initial concept was to expose his work from the perspective of four seasons and we started production last autumn. However, the following winter I knew that the film was going to be all about cold, snow, isolation and life on the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. “White” is about an artist, and a way of life; is about a farm in a place in Virginia; it is about food and God, is about love, water, trees, and the relentless relationship between time and oneself. Moreover, “White” is a film about an artist named John Borden Evans.
NOTES
“White: A Season in the Life of John Borden Evans, is a close look at an intriguing couple who chartered their own course and made you envious.” - Julian Bond | Washington, DC
"The whole thing is so skillfully woven together -- John's quiet voice, and silence, and then the music. It creates a wonderful, wondering mood. The stars. and the cows. and trees.” - Alice Parker | Composer
"The treatment of each scene mirrors the austere choice of monastic life in accord with the silence of art and its spirituality. The cautiously crafted composition, and the sensible use of light blend film and theme as one. I felt the hard-work, firm abundant and serious work which makes the film a work of art in itself, a work of art within a work of art " Eugenio Cuttica | New York City
"My first impression is BRAVO and my second is superb. Your camera work is exquisite and I felt you captured something important about John as well as Beth-Neville. I’m looking forward to seeing the film about the next person you chose to profile.” David A. Maurer | The Daily Progress
AWARDS
Best Documentary, Richmond International Film Festival 2015
Best Documentary, International Documentary Festival of Ierapetra, 2015