Columbus painter Alice Schille’s story told in new documentary, 'Cactus Tree'

Filmmaker Kurt Vincent grew up in Bexley, went to school at Denison University in Granville and, after a stint in Brooklyn, is now back in Ohio.

Until a few years ago, though, he had never heard of one of Columbus’ most prominent artists, Alice Schille.

The painter, who was born in 1869 and died in 1955, balanced a day job teaching at the Columbus Art School (now the Columbus College of Art & Design) with a globe-trotting career as a watercolorist. She was widely acclaimed in her day before falling off the radar of art historians.

In 2018, Vincent attended a Christmas party at Keny Galleries, the German Village gallery run by brothers Jim and Tim Keny. The siblings’ family has had a connection with Schille going back generations; their grandmother and their mother sat for portraits by the artist, and, as gallerists themselves, they have sought to raise her profile with exhibitions and scholarship.

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At that Christmas party, Vincent — whose brother Kendrick is married to Tim Keny’s daughter Carey — spotted a watercolor that grabbed his attention. The artist: Alice Schille.

“I felt this power in this painting, and when I found out that it was (by) somebody who grew up five minutes from where I grew up, I was like, ‘Oh my God,’” said Vincent, 38. “We went over to it, and (Jim) just started telling me the story of Alice Schille.” 

Upon leaving the party, he told his partner and fellow filmmaker, Irene Kim Chin, that there might be a movie in the story of the Schilles and the Kenys.

“It was a few days later that he broached the idea of: ‘You know, I’ve been thinking about this artist and thinking about your family and the gallery ... and we would like to do a film on it,” said Jim Keny, 65.

The resulting documentary, “Cactus Tree,” will premiere Oct. 14 at the Columbus Museum of Art. Vincent and Chin co-directed the film, which will also be shown on WOSU-TV on Nov. 12.

The half-hour film — whose title refers to a Joni Mitchell song the filmmakers were inspired by while working on the project — sketches a biographical portrait of Schille through the voices of Jim Keny and his daughter, Tara, an up-and-coming curator who collaborated with her father on a well-received 2019 exhibition at the Columbus Museum of Art, “In a New Light: Alice Schille and the American Watercolor Movement.”

Much of the documentary was filmed in the run-up to that exhibition.

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“We were in the middle of conceiving the exhibition when they first approached us,” said Tara Keny, 36, who now resides in Italy and works as a translator for the Easton Foundation, dedicated to the work of French-born artist Louise Bourgeois. She contributed significant archival research on Schille that informed the exhibition. 

“We felt like (the exhibition) was kind of our baby,” Tara Keny said. “The more I got to know Kurt and Irene, and saw how passionate they were about Schille and also the gallery, it became really fun.”

Vincent said that, instead of simply recounting the bare facts about Schille’s life, he wanted to make a film that reflected the Kenys’ belief in, and advocacy on behalf of, her work.

“We make films about people, really,” Vincent said. “We knew that if we were to make a film about Alice Schille, it had to involve characters that we connected with. We’re not art historians, and we have no interest in being humanities scholars.” 

Chin said that she, too, was drawn into the story as much by the Kenys.

“There was something about their story and the father-daughter relationship that I thought could be really compelling,” said Chin, 36.

Both father and daughter were pleased when they saw the final film, which received support from the Columbus Foundation and individual donors. An all-local crew was used in its making.

“(Vincent and Chin) were very private about the film, and we had no say in how it was done,” Tara Keny said. “I was so moved by how they captured my relationship with my dad and also just my family in general.”

In the end, the film makes clear that the Kenys’ belief in the artistry of Schille continues.

“(The documentary) was really moving to me,” Jim Keny said. “This is a lifetime of work.”

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At a glance

The documentary “Cactus Tree” will be shown at 6 p.m. Oct. 14 at the Columbus Museum of Art, 480 E. Broad St. The screening is included with general admission to the museum ($5 between 5 and 9 p.m. on Oct. 14). Face masks are required; the first 100 to register to see the film will receive a Schille face covering. For more information, visit www.columbusmuseum.org.

The film will also premiere at 9 p.m. Nov. 12 on WOSU-TV (Channel 34).