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"A well-crafted journey into a corner of odd Americana... Bernier
clearly 'gets' Tashjian's obsession with the nut as a living entity
redolent with humor, texture, variety and even mystery." "An elegy for a lost post-War generation, an essay about societal
attitudes towards the aging, and a celebration of individuality and
the power of artmaking." "Bernier's refreshing documentary reveals the talented, classically
trained artist underneath all the nuts... A fun, poignant and heartrending
portrait that never condescends."
In a Nutshell (2005, 80:00, DV) chronicles the unique life of Elizabeth Yegsa Tashjian: at birth in 1912, a first generation American of aristocratic Armenian immigrants; at age nine, a concert violinist living on Manhattan's upper west side; at twenty-one, an award-winning classical painter studying at the National Academy of Design in New York; at age forty-seven, a devoted Christian Science healer; and, at the youthful age of sixty, creator of the one and only Nut Museum. At ninety-two years old, Tashjian found herself immersed in a strange new chapter of her prolific life. After a series of tragic events surrounding her health and finances, she was penniless and confined to a nursing home against her will. The contents of the Nut Museum were permanently removed and her beloved home sold to the highest bidder. Declared insane by her state-appointed conservators, Elizabeth Tashjian fought to preserve her identity and regain the life she built. |