Matt McKnight 's entry into the
2019 Raw Vision short film competition
Harry Underwood is a reclusive self-taught painter who weaves complex narratives through paintings done with house paint on wood panels and written atop with No. 2 pencils. I first discovered Harry Underwood's work at the Lindsay Gallery in Columbus, OH.
I have since met him a few times and have been amazed at his intellect--an intellect that exists despite his expulsion from high school and life in the shadows as a laborer and then painter.
When I saw this film competition, I insisted to Harry that he let me do a film, and he agreed. The film is shot in Harry's home studio and the small, forgotten town that surrounds it.
My hope is that it will help the world to see Harry’s wonderful paintings and understand a bit of the artistic, but troubled, genius behind them.