Struggle: The Life and Lost Art of Szukalski — Trailer

added: Wed, Dec 12th '18

From producer Leonardo DiCaprio comes a new Netflix original documentary that chronicles the life and work of eccentric Polish painter and sculptor Stanislav Szukalski.

Directed by documentarian Irek Dobrowolski (The Portraitist), "Struggle: The Life and Lost Art of Szukalski" tells the remarkable story of how a pop culture collector in Los Angeles named Glenn Bray rediscovered the forgotten art of 1930s Polish sculptor Stanislav Szukalski, and then actually discovered he was still alive and living only a few minutes away in the same city.

Featuring Bray's own home videos, the film chronicles his unique relationship with a then 80-year-old Szukalski, who is regarded as a forgotten art genius whose sculptures and artwork were mostly destroyed by the Nazis during the war.

After Szukalski fled Poland, he settled in Los Angeles in the 1940s, where he lived in mostly low-income neighborhoods, hidden away in plain sight. In the '60s, his artwork was rediscovered and began making the rounds among local L.A. counterculture artists. Among them was underground comic book artist George DiCaprio, who -- along with his son, actor Leonardo DiCaprio -- became one of Szukalski's biggest supporters.

"Struggle: The Life and Lost Art of Szukalski" is set to premiere December 21 on Netflix. Watch the trailer, above.

synopsis:
STRUGGLE: THE LIFE AND LOST ART OF SZUKALSKI takes us inside the mind of one of the last century's great characters, offering a startling look at how history can stand in the way of true artistic genius in one generation while stepping aside to reveal it dramatically in the next.

In 1968, pop culture collector Glenn Bray, who had an interest in surrealist art, happened upon an unusual book featuring the art of Stanislav Szukalski. Like most people, Bray had never heard of Szukalski, but he delighted in showing the book of drawings and photos of sculptures to his circle of friends in the underground art comic world, including Robert and Suzanne Williams and George DiCaprio, who found the forgotten Polish master's vision far ahead of its time.

It was a few years later when Bray noticed an unusual poster depicting Copernicus on the wall of a small bookstore in Tarzana – something he immediately recognized as the work of Szukalski. The bookseller informed him that the artist himself had given the poster as a gift – in fact, he lived nearby. Bray couldn’t believe it – this long-forgotten genius was still alive, and in the same area code.

directed by Irek Dobrowolski

release date December 21, 2018 (on Netflix)