The Sandman's Garden
2005•1h 6m•Released
Documentary
This documentary examines the life and art of Lonnie Holley, a self-taught African-American artist based in Birmingham, Alabama. It follows Holley as he builds a sculptural environment out of discarded materials and found objects in the Birmingham Museum of Art’s sculpture garden. His art is by turns profound, playful, and deeply moving. As the garden grows piece by piece, Holley is revealed as a man who has overcome a tortured past. Growing up poor and black in the 20th century American South, Holley worked to overcome prejudice and deprivation by using art to explore his life and ideas. The camera captures the artist’s process and reflections as he gathers materials, creates pieces, interacts with others, and relives the joys and sorrows that forged his unique and genuine artwork.
Director
Arthur Sloss Crenshaw
Cast
Lonnie Holley
Recommended
6.5
Heart of a Dog
2015
6.2
Naqoyqatsi
2002
7.1
Come See Me in the Good Light
2025
7.6
42 Up
1999
6.4
Fuck
2006
7.5
Struggle: The Life and Lost Art of Szukalski
2018
7.4
McQueen
2018
7.2
Avatar: The Deep Dive - A Special Edition of 20/20
2022
7.2
Daft Punk Unchained
2015
6.4
A Toxic Love Story
2026
6.2
Seduced and Abandoned
2013
7.6
35 Up
1991
7.8
As I Was Moving Ahead Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty
2000
6.8
Looking for Richard
1996
7.2
The Curse of the Dragon
1993
7
Oasis: Don't Look Back in Anger
2026
7
Western Stars
2019
7.1
The Class of ‘92
2013
6.7
Something from Nothing: The Art of Rap
2012
8.5
No Half Measures: Creating the Final Season of Breaking Bad
2013
Similar Movies
Half Serious, Half Kidding
2023
James Castle: Portrait of an Artist
2008
Paradise Garden: Howard Finster's Legacy
2014
I Dreamed I Searched for You in Heaven
2012
6.3
Magical Universe
2014
6
This World Is Not My Own
2023
6.5
A Life on the Farm
2023
All Rendered Truth: Folk Art in the American South
2009
Shadow Theater
2016
7
Robert Williams Mr. Bitchin'
2013
Outsider: The Life and Art of Judith Scott
2006
Outsiders
2003
Heaven and Earth and Joe Davis
2011
10
Pinball Go to the Movies!
2025
9
Margaret Kilgallen: Heroines
0
Kathleen Ware, Quiltmaker
1979
Greenidge Meantime
2001
Salvation Mountain - Leonard Knight
2025
Lady Lemon
2025
2
Girl Internet Show: A Kati Kelli Mixtape
2022