The Artist Who Disappeared
The Artist Who Disappeared is a feature length documentary exploring the fascinating story behind one of the most remote and eclectic festivals on the planet and the strange disappearance of its founder, Soviet émigré and artist Sergei Ivanov.
Sergei Ivanov & Tsz Man Chan
Synopsis
When artist and Soviet émigré, Sergei Ivanov moves with his partner Tsz Man Chan to the remote Scottish island of Papa Westray, they start an International Arts Festival bringing an eclectic mix of artists, performers and musicians to the island from as far afield as Japan and the USA.
With the festival entering its seventh year they invite their friend and filmmaker David Kew to make a documentary about their extraordinary project.
But when Sergei suddenly disappears without trace on the island three months into filming, the filmmaker is forced to embark on a profound journey of discovery and contemplation.
As the filmmaker interviews those left behind; friends, family and islanders, each in their own way trying to make sense of Sergei’s vanishing, the film gravitates towards Tsz Man Chan as she attempts to come to terms with her grief by creating a profound and moving tribute to Sergei on the island.
The Artist Who Disappeared is a film that goes to the very heart of what it means to be an artist and the nature of loss.
Papa Westray, Orkney Islands, Scotland
THE ISLAND
Situated on the edge of the North Atlantic Ocean, the rugged and barely accessible island of Papa Westray is one of the most northern inhabited islands of Orkney.
Battered by storms and with a total resident population of just 90 people the islanders have to adjust to their isolation. Those who don’t… either leave or go mad.
Papa Westray is bereft of trees and the island’s resident sheep population vastly outnumbers the human inhabitants.
THE FESTIVAL
The Papay Gyro Nights Arts Festival took place on the island each year in February from 2011 to 2016. During the festival, the island was transformed into a living art space with works screened, performed and exhibited in old farm buildings, boat houses, workshops, ruins and open landscapes. Artists from all over the world made the arduous journey to take part in the festival in isolated and extreme winter weather conditions.
The idea of the festival originated from an ancient island tradition, the Night of the Gyro – which until the beginning of the 20th Century was celebrated on Papa Westray on the first full moon of February.
THE ARTIST
Visionary, contemporary artist Sergei Ivanov moved to the island of Papa Westray in 2007. Operating outside the mainstream commercial art world, his extraordinary body of work includes paintings, photographs, installations, performance and architecture.
Originally from Kazakhstan, Sergei came to the UK in 1992. During his time in London, he had exhibitions in Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Mexico, India and the UK.
Many of his works can be found in private collections in those countries and also in USA, Canada and Australia.
THE FILM
Shot over several years, The Artist Who Disappeared includes profoundly moving scenes with Tsz Man Chan in the wake of Sergei’s disappearance, interviews with islanders, artists and close family members, film and photo archive from the festival and specially shot sequences in Scotland, Norway and Hong Kong.
The filmmaker becomes part of the very fabric of the film as he undertakes a personal journey to find out what has become of his artist friend.
The Artist Who Disappeared captures the wild beauty of the remote Orkney islands with the stunning cinematography complemented by an original score by composer James Hesford.
David Kew - Filmmaker
Tsz Man Chan
Artist, Festival Co-founder & Sergei’s partner
Contact us.
The Artist Who Disappeared is currently in Post-production.