“No human community can exist without culture.”
This is the wisdom shared by Vaclav Havel.
Vaclav, a former playwright and elected first president of the Czech Republic, shared this bit of insight as part of the Wisdom project.
Wisdom is the work of 34 year old New York based photographer Andrew Zuckerman who completed the project in 2008.
Inspired by the idea that one of the greatest gifts a generation can give to the next is wisdom gained from experience, the project consists of a collection of 50 photographs/interviews that capture the wisdom of legendary leaders and visionaries, over the age of sixty-five, from the worlds of politics, science, sports and the arts.
Wisdom exists in the form of a book of portraits, a film and a travelling exhibition.
The latter (the exhibition’s Canadian premiere) is on display at Toronto’s elegant Brookfield Place (formerly BCE Place) until August 5th, 2011.
- Each copy of the book comes with a download code for a 60-minute film comprised of interviews from the project.
Among the global personalities featured are people such as Actor/Director (and all around Dirty Harry) Clint Eastwood, Diplomat and Nobel Peace Prize winner Henry Kissinger, first woman to become United States Secretary of State Madeline Albright and Actor Robert Redford.
There are also two notable characters as far as Poland and Canada are concerned. The first is Zbigniew Brzezinski, Warsaw born, McGill University educated, former United States National Security Advisor to President Jimmy Carter.
The second, is world renowned architect Frank Gehry who was born in Toronto and hails from Polish Jewish ancestry.
Wisdom is an inspiring and rewarding exhibition. If you’re in need of a gust of in your sails make sure to check it out. Best of all, it’s free!
And if you’re looking to combine the show with a nice dinner – we recommend either Ki (Modern Japanese) or the eclectic Marché which are just steps away.
Enjoy your dose of wisdom!
But before you dig in, check out this trailer for the film…
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