Amie Siegel’s Provenance sheds light on the relationship between art and capital. The furniture’s value was determined by the setting. First, in Chandigarh the chair was tattered and unwanted as it sat in different workplaces unnoticed. As the film went on, the furniture was refurbished to a more desirable, profitable form. With this, it could be sold for thousands of dollars at auctions, or sit in lavishing homes as a symbol of the family’s wealth.

The aesthetics used in the film were important in Siegel’s message. The perfectly clear images, as well as the surround sound makes you feel as though you’re part of the journey. To add to this, there wasn’t a typical frame to the film, it was simply projected onto a white wall. This made it more personal, like you were travelling to each stage with the furniture.

Lighting played a key role in Siegel’s film. The lighting was dark in the warehouses of broken chairs to signify worthlessness. On the other hand, the lighting was piercingly bright in the beautiful homes and the attractive yacht. This technique made the furniture more appealing and desirable as its value increased.

The unique form of storytelling backwards served the purpose of tracing the value of the chair from its original decrepit beginnings. In this journey, Siegel captures capitalism in the art market. Showing the furniture in exquisite homes, and then being sold at outlandish prices at auctions demonstrates the materialism in today’s art world.

It was interesting that we saw the film from the ‘end’. In our eyes we saw the chair being constantly upgraded from its original shabby state in the first setting in an orderly fashion. Overall, I found that film as a form of art was more captivating, and the lack of narration made the message mysteriously powerful.