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it sounds unlikely, but
a flock of tropical South American parrots—cherry-headed
conures, or Aratinga erythrogenys—lives
freely in San Francisco, remnants of a time when it
was legal to import them as pets. Just as unlikely is
the story of the homeless bohemian who first noticed
the feathery escapees on Telegraph Hill in 1990. Mark
Bittner was so intrigued he began feeding the birds
and recording his daily observations. In time, the flock
of 26 would eat out of his hand. He learned to recognize
each one, gave them fitting names—Olive, Pushkin,
Mingus—and saw his life transformed.
Now Judy Irving, a graduate of Stanford’s film
program, has made The Wild Parrots of Telegraph
Hill. The 83-minute documentary is currently playing
in art-house theaters across the country, released in
tandem with Bittner’s memoir. Irving, MA ’73,
has said it’s her best work—and she’s
an Emmy winner for Dark Circle, a documentary
on nuclear dangers. “It is that rare documentary
that has romance, comedy and a surprise ending that
makes you feel as if you could fly out of the theater,”
wrote Bruce Newman in the San Jose Mercury News.
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SACRED DANCE: The Hindu deity
Shiva.
Courtesy Cantor Arts Center |
sri lankan art is rarely
seen in the West, but a Cantor Arts Center exhibition
organized by the Phoenix Art Museum will make amends.
Running from March 2 through June 12, Guardian of the
Flame: Art of Sri Lanka presents more than 40 works
from the pear-shaped island off India’s south
coast. Assembled from private collections, they span
two millennia, from the Anuradhapura period (269 B.C.
to A.D. 933) to the final British conquest in 1815 of
the land the colonists renamed Ceylon.
The exhibit focuses on sculptures that demonstrate Sri
Lanka’s major role in spreading Buddhism, and
the art it inspired, to Southeast Asia. Complementing
the display of gilt bronze Buddhas are rare palm-leaf
manuscripts and manuscript covers, crystal reliquaries,
and a richly symbolic image (pictured, right) of the
Hindu deity Shiva performing his dance cycle that destroys
and recreates the universe.
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