Dinotopia: The Fantastical
Art of James Gurney
February 6, 2010 - May 16, 2010
Art object labels from the exhibition
-
-
- Will and Bix, 1992, illustration
for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- An engineer by trade, James Gurney's father often spent
evenings inventing things in his workshop, and encouraged his son to join
in. Each new invention began with a drawing that brought new ideas to life.
"My father always told me that anything is possible in a drawing and
that everything begins with a drawing," from a car to a concept for
a book.
-
- Fast friends on the island of Dinotopia, Will and Bix
are among James Gurney's primary story characters. A parrot-beaked Protoceratops,
Bix acts as translator and speaks a wide range of languages. In reality,
though, she would not have been equipped for speech. Scientists have few
clues as to what kinds of sounds dinosaurs made.
-
-
-
- Dinotopia Map, 1992, illustration
for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- Though the exact location of the lost island of Dinotopia
has not been charted, this "Dinosaur Utopia" is geographically
diverse. Roughly 200 miles wide, it is divided in the center by the Forbidden
Mountains, with wet jungles to the west and arid canyons and deserts to
the east.
-
-
-
- Discovering the Book, 1992,
illustration for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- The story of Dinotopia begins in a grand university library
where Arthur Denison's leather-bound sketchbook is first discovered by
artist James Gurney, who pictures himself there. A fictional explorer,
Denison reveals his fantastical experiences through a series of journal
entries that begin on November 10, 1862, shortly after he and his son Will
were shipwrecked on the lost island.
-
- "The drawings showed people and dinosaurs living
side by side. But this was an impossibility," Gurney observed after
paging through Denison's book. "Dinosaurs had disappeared from the
earth nearly 65 million years ago, long before mankind evolved."
-
-
-
- Portrait of Will and Arthur,
1992, illustration for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- James Gurney strives to create a sense of believability
in his art, making the world of Dinotopia real for his readers. "Ever
since my parents first set me in a sandbox, it has been my dream to create
a whole world, complete in every detail," he has said. Here, the artist
has captured his protagonists, Arthur and Will Denison, in what appears
to be a worn and water-logged photograph that has fallen out of the mysterious
journal.
-
-
-
- Stormy Seas, 1992, illustration
for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- As a boy, James Gurney loved adventure stories and the
illustrated classics that were filled with dynamic imagery by America's
Golden Age illustrators, such as Howard Pyle (1853-1911) and N. C. Wyeth
(1882-1945). The grandfather of American illustration, Pyle was also a
renowned teacher who advised his students to step through the picture plane
to imagine every part of the scene portrayed-from the details of its setting
and costume to its mood, weather, and time of day.
-
- James Gurney has taken the advice of the masters to heart.
In this dramatic work, we are plunged into a churning sea with Arthur and
Will Denison when their schooner Venturer is struck by the sudden fury
of a typhoon that would bring them to Dinotopia.
-
-
-
- Outside the Hatchery (Warming the Eggs), 1992, illustration for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- In Dinotopia, most dinosaurs are born in the Hatchery,
where females travel to lay their eggs in indoor nests. Ironically, the
artist has placed Oviraptors in charge of the Hatchery. When Dinotopia:
A Land Apart from Time was published, Oviraptors were thought to be egg
stealers because their bones were found with eggs believed to be from another
kind of dinosaur. Two years later, scientists changed their view of these
creatures after finding evidence that the Oviraptors were simply guarding
the eggs of their own young. Though they never deserved their reputation,
they are stuck with a name that means "egg thief." Their powerful
toothless beaks may have been used for crushing shellfish.
-
- In this image, an Oviraptor gently cradles a dinosaur
egg that must be kept warm while in transit. To portray the appearance
and the mannerisms of dinosaurs convincingly, James Gurney carefully observes
the behavior of living creatures -- from human beings to his own parakeet.
-
-
-
- Hatchling Helper, 1992, illustration
for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- Baby dinosaurs, like baby birds, become attached to whoever
they meet and have to be acquainted with their own kin. Here, a Maiasaura
hatchling is lifted up to meet a visiting aunt in a painting inspired by
the work of scientist Jack Horner, who discovered a famous dinosaur nesting
site. Maiasaura means "good mother lizard." Dinosaur and human
facial expressions reflect the close companionship that island residents
share.
-
-
-
- Dinosaur Nanny, 1992, illustration
for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- This Troodon nanny is giving human parents a helping
hand for the day. Trust and friendship between dinosaurs and humans is
an important part of life in Dinotopia.
-
- For James Gurney, dinosaurs are creatures that live between
worlds of fantasy and reality. Though their existence has been established
through skeletal remains and fossils, it takes imagination to create a
believable image of these prehistoric animals. Each dinosaur is given a
physical appearance consistent with the most current scientific research
and endowed with a personality of the artist's own design.
-
-
-
- Dinosaur Care, 1992, illustration
for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- James Gurney's tale emphasizes the importance of caring
for all the members of one's community. In this image, specialists groom
dinosaurs with a special measure of trust-especially during a particular
Camarasaurus' dental checkup.
-
-
-
- Blacksmith Shop, 1992, illustration
for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- In the industrial town of Volcaneum, chief craftsman
Tok Timbu forges metal implements that are needed by the residents of Dinotopia.
His team of craftsman includes a powerful Rutiodon, who pumps the bellows
that keeps the fire burning.
-
- James Gurney's studio in New York's Hudson River Valley
is filled with model dinosaurs of all kinds, which he has purchased or
sculpted by hand. These provide invaluable reference for his paintings
when viewed at different angles or in different lighting conditions. Friends
and family members also act as models for the artist, who follows many
of Norman Rockwell's own techniques for making a picture-from creating
a thumbnail sketch to establishing just the right characters and setting.
-
-
-
- Footprint Alphabet, 1992,
illustration for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- On the lost island, dinosaurs have languages of their
own that are often unintelligible to humans. They communicate effectively
in written form, however, through the use of a footprint alphabet. These
calligraphic imprints have evolved from earlier times when messages left
in the form of tracks on muddy riverbanks conveyed secret messages.
-
-
-
- Sandbox Scribes, 1992, illustration
for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- Three-toed dinosaurs such as the Ornithomimus serve as
scribes in Dinotopia, since they are "fine dancers with good, clear
footprints."
-
- Early wisdom was recorded on ancient scrolls, but gossip,
ideas, and anecdotes are generally written out in a sandbox, where they
can be easily erased.
-
- The artist establishes a sense of scale in this image
by surrounding Arthur, Will, Bix, and the librarian Nallab with several
curious readers. Clockwise from the left, these include the enormous Stegosaurus,
Chasmosaurus, Pachycephalosaurus, and Saltasaurus.
-
-
-
- Archway Scene: Waterfall City,
1992, illustration for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- In the heart of Waterfall City, a powerful Ankylosaurus
pulls a tour boat along the Pliosaur Canal. Arthur Denison reports that
he has "wandered past canals and fountains, monuments and schools,
gardens and observatories, kiosks and theaters -- all woven into a watery
labyrinth of stone that would shame even Venice."
-
-
-
- Habitat Partners, 1992, illustration
for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- Immersed in his epic tale, James Gurney has carefully
considered everything from island terrain to the costumes, roles, and demeanors
of his characters. In this painting, human and dinosaur representatives
from each biological region on the island are portrayed as habitat partners,
who spend their lives monitoring the conditions within their territories.
Their findings are presented and commented upon annually at a Dinotopian
conference.
-
-
-
- Sleeping Barns, 1992, illustration
for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- Moonlight illuminates a barn filled with giant Brachiosaurs
who sleep indoors for protection from stray Carnosaurs. The heavy shifting
of feet and the rumble of rocks in their bellies, which help to grind their
food, kept their young visitor awake for much of the night.
-
-
-
- Skyhopping, 1992, illustration
for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- In this popular Dinotopian sport, giraffe-necked Brachiosaurs
pick humans up and fling them high into the air before they splash down
into the water. A Brachiosaurus could stand 39 feet high and weigh an incredible
78 tons-as much as 12 African elephants. Its long neck could reach the
tasty young leaves at the tops of the tallest trees.
-
-
-
- Dream Canyon, 1992, illustration
for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- Canyon City is carved into the sandstone walls of the
Amu River, where young pilots train to fly on gigantic winged pterosaurs.
The artist's sketching trips to the Grand Canyon and other sites in America's
Southwest inspire the design of the canyons in Dinotopia.
-
-
-
- Ring Riders, 1992, illustration
for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on canvas mounted to birch plywood
- Collection of the artist
-
- James Gurney's collection of unique costumes and hats
came in handy when composing Ring Riders, which depicts the crowing contest
in Dinotopia's Olympic Games. The object of the event is to capture the
greatest number of rings of the proper color. Banners strung across the
track represent each of the island's four quadrants. On the lower right,
a small Dimorphodon flies ahead of the racers to set their pace.
-
-
-
- Ancient Canyon Monuments,
1992, illustration for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- When creating fantasy destinations, James Gurney visits
actual places that have a similar look and feel to those he would like
to portray. When designing Canyon City, the setting for these ancient monuments,
he traveled to the American Southwest. There, he studied rock formations
and painted on location to capture dazzling visual effects, such as the
play of light on water and stone.
-
-
-
- Ancient Mountain Mammals,
1992, illustration for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- Dinotopia's Forbidden Mountains are home to many Ice
Age mammals like the Moropus and Brontotherium pictured here. Most dinosaurs
cannot retain enough body heat to venture into this frozen realm.
-
-
-
- Skybax Ryder, 1992, illustration
for Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- The winged Quetzalcoatlus was the largest creature ever
to fly above the earth. Known as "skybax" in Dinotopia, these
enormous pterosaurs carry young pilots high into the air. Like all of the
creatures in James Gurney's series, they are based upon accurate scientific
fossil evidence.
-
-
-
- Storyboard, 1993, studies
for Dinotopia: The World Beneath
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Marker on paper mounted to board
- Collection of the Artist
-
- Like a director planning an animated or live-action film,
James Gurney maps out the action in his books by creating a storyboard.
This visual script helps him think about how a story will unfold from page
to page before final paintings are even begun. The artist takes time to
consider when and how each character will enter a scene, what mood to establish,
and what perspectives would be most interesting-from bird's eye to ant's
eye views.
-
- James Gurney's storyboards are completed before finished
text because pictures come first in his artistic process. "What I
love about Dinotopia," he said, "is that it allows for all sorts
of pictures, from landscapes to portraits and still lifes, including quick
sketches and elaborately finished paintings."
-
-
-
- Steep Street, 1995, illustration
for Dinotopia: The World Beneath
- James Gurney (born 1958)
-
- Oil on board
- Collection of the artist
-
- Streets are narrow in Waterfall City and they are steep
enough to require steps -- large ones for dinosaurs and small ones for
people. Heavily trafficked, this scene includes an eighty-foot-long Apatosaurus
carrying Will and Arthur Denison and a trio of musicians. A sturdy Chasmosaurus
transports a passenger, and all along the narrow lane, shop signs advertise
their wares in Dinotopia's footprint alphabet.
-
-
-