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Vano is a bit of a naïf, a man with a gift for drawing and painting who observes the world with wonder, conducting his affairs as if they existed solely for his artistic edification. He is greatly loved by the simpler people he encounters, but his single-minded art mania is a great trial for his long-suffering wife, who cannot support the two of them on what she herself earns. In this Armenian tale, the painter takes a job as a clerk at a rich man's shop. However, his neglect of business leads to his getting fired. One of the simple folk he meets tells him that he is one of the few to be blessed with a "magic ladder" -- which is to say, his art -- and it is his responsibility to climb it. After Vano is fired, he is too scared of his wife's reaction to the news to go home and tell her. Instead, he creates a painting to give to the shop-owner as a peace-offering, and he briefly wins his job back again. In this poetic and evocative film, the artist's inner freedom is celebrated, even when he proves unable to manage his everyday life.