Resisting Paradise examines the individual’s role in times of conflict, focusing on the friendship and creative artistic output of Henri Matisse and Pierre Bonnard, who lived a sequestered existence in the south of France during WWII amid an active French resistance. This 16mm experimental documentary juxtaposes a reinterpretation of French painting with a soundtrack made up of interviews with three surviving French resistance fighters. Barbara Hammer raises issues of artistic identity, the pleasure of looking and political responsibility through an exploration of disjunctive image and sound, viewing French painting through a gendered eye. Resisting Paradise continues Hammer’s use of film emulsion, her creative use of picture and sound, and her longtime commitment to making visible neglected aspects of history.