blog: Bas Jan Ader

Looking at Bas Jan Ader’s work, as we did in class, there is a clear and intriguing progression in his work as he begins to realize and then fully embrace his fascination with gravity and its power over everything. I found the film Here Is Always Somewhere Else an interesting record of Bas Jan Ader’s life, mostly because the filmmaker obviously had no access to Bas Jan Ader himself, so the report of his life is completely from the eyes and speculations of those who were around him. What I find so magnetizing about Bas Jan Ader’s life, regardless of whether or not I like it, is the emotional connection between Bas Jan Ader and his work. I think this is explained best in Here Is Always Somewhere Else by the sections of interviews with Bas Jan Ader’s wife. The part of the movie that I remember most distinctly is towards the end when the film talks about Bas Jan Ader building a boat and preparing to sail; his wife tells the camera that she knew he thought he would make it through this adventure, but that she had no doubt that she would never see him again. Hearing that was so striking because it was the step away from the actual artist; I feel like we always try to see life from a particular artist’s view, we strive so much to see through an artist’s eyes. But by doing this, especially with famous artists like Bas Jan Ader, we forget to see the people that their art affects so directly: their families and loved ones.