A new documentary film captures the extraordinary dedication of British artist Tony Foster, whose pursuit of the perfect landscape painting takes him to some of the world's most remote and dangerous locations. The 79-year-old watercolor painter requires his expedition companions to sign contracts that include a sobering clause: they must carry sufficient personal insurance to have their bodies flown home in case of death.
Director David Schendel followed Foster on a raft journey down the Green River in Wyoming and Utah to create this compelling portrait of an artist who pushes physical and creative boundaries. Foster, described by a longtime friend as resembling 'two toothpicks in a potato,' has spent more than 30 years trekking through challenging terrain across the American wilderness, Bolivia, Mount Everest, and countless other locations in search of the ideal vantage point for his paintings.
The self-taught artist's dedication to his craft is both inspiring and extreme. On one expedition, Foster spent 16 days searching for the right spot before setting up his easel. Once he finds his location, he creates luminous, airy panoramic watercolors with remarkable jewel-like clarity. Foster explains that his work goes beyond simply projecting personal feelings onto a landscape – the painting process is meditative, focused on absorbing what the natural environment offers him.
Foster's background reveals a streak of independence that has shaped his unconventional career path. Growing up in rural Lincolnshire, he rebelled against traditional education and eventually found himself homeless on the streets of London during the swinging sixties – a period of his life he initially refuses to discuss in the documentary. This early experience of self-reliance appears to have influenced his later willingness to venture into remote wilderness areas alone.
The artist describes himself as political, driven by a mission to capture wilderness areas that are rapidly disappearing due to environmental changes and human development. He also grapples with geological time scales, describing himself as 'a molecule on a gnat's eyelash' when confronted with nature's overwhelming monumentality. However, the film doesn't fully explore whether this perspective brings him comfort or represents something he feels compelled to challenge through his continued expeditions into old age.
The documentary loses some momentum when it follows Foster back to his studio in Cornwall, where he completes each painting begun in the wilderness. The artist appears visibly deflated when his Green River artwork is packed up and shipped off to galleries, highlighting the emotional attachment he develops to pieces created through such intense physical and mental effort.
Schendel's cinematography captures stunning visuals that rival Foster's own artistic creations, though the filmmaker acknowledges he doesn't have to endure the same physical hardships to achieve his results. The documentary offers viewers both spectacular scenery and insight into an artist whose commitment to his craft borders on obsession.
'Tony Foster: Painting at the Edge' is scheduled to open in UK cinemas beginning November 14, offering audiences a chance to experience the extreme dedication required to create art in some of the world's most challenging environments.
