- Hardcover: 288 pages
- Publisher: Chronicle Books (May 1 2002)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0811831361
- ISBN-13: 978-0811831369
- Product Dimensions: 30 x 25.8 x 3 cm
- Shipping Weight: 2.2 Kg
- Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
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Amazon Bestsellers Rank:
#803,118 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #86 in Books > Entertainment > Movies > Cinematography
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
"The beauty of a matte shot is that you can become God," Alfred Hitchcock said, and it's a fitting epigram to this remarkable study of a little-known facet of Hollywood illusion-the art of painting background scenery on glass. Captured by the camera and merged with live action, a distant galaxy, a lost empire or an impossible landscape can look undeniably real. And yet, among all the masters of filmic art's smoke and mirrors-the fashioners of masks and prosthetic limbs, the pyrotechnic wizards behind giant, slow motion explosions-matte painters remain some of the least appreciated artisans. (It is, note the authors, their very genius that keeps them "unsung": audiences often don't even know that what they're seeing isn't real.) This book represents the first sustained look at the art and technology of matte painting. Featuring over 400 images, plus interviews with many of the greatest matte painters themselves, it tells a story of wildly inventive artifice and myriad man-hours, offering a peek inside a guild of genuine movie magicians. As a feast of technical information and an alternative history of movies themselves, from their frontier days to the global system as it exists today, this book is a labor of both love and intelligence.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
This work explores the invention and use of glass matte paintings in film. Created as backgrounds by talented artists, these paintings were then blended with live-action shots to show, for instance, the burning of Atlanta in Gone with the Wind and the parting of the Red Sea in The Ten Commandments. Cotta Vaz and Barron have done extensive research on this little-known art form, starting with its earliest use and moving to the digital age. Much of the information is drawn from firsthand interviews with artists who have worked on major films, with the chapters on Gone with the Wind, King Kong, and earlier epics proving to be of particular interest. The color photos are beautifully reproduced on high-quality paper, and the accompanying CD shows how glass painting is used with text from the book. This is not only an "invisible art" but also, unfortunately, a dying one as digital technology slowly replaces the artists. Drawbacks to a book like this are its limited appeal, oversized format, and high price. But it is still highly recommended for academic libraries with strong film, art, and digital art programs, and other large libraries should consider it.
Rosalind Dayen, Broward Cty. South Regional Lib., Pembroke Pines, FL
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Rosalind Dayen, Broward Cty. South Regional Lib., Pembroke Pines, FL
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
First Sentence
IN 1899, WHEN NORMAN DAWN first visited Paris, the Eiffel Tower-at a thousand feet the tallest building in the world-was celebrating its tenth birthday. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
IN 1899, WHEN NORMAN DAWN first visited Paris, the Eiffel Tower-at a thousand feet the tallest building in the world-was celebrating its tenth birthday. Read the first page
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Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Absolutely Perfect!,
By
This review is from: The Invisible Art: The Legends of Movie Matte Painting (Hardcover)
I received this book last week, and had time over the weekend to enjoy a lot of it's contents.Matte Paintings have always been my favourite aspect of SFX, so this book was one I have been waiting for. The price put me off, so I spent longer than I should deciding to buy it. I diddn't need to worry. If you love the art of the Matte Painting, this is the one book you'll need, and the only one you'll need. From interviews with the Matte Artists themselves, and a complete history of the Matte painting, it simply covers all you'd want. A CD rom is included which compliments the book perfectly. A beautiful book- Well written, and with the quality of layout that a subject like this deserves. Well done to the creators of this excellent publication!
5.0 out of 5 stars
Finally an explanation for what my father does!,
By lisanne53 "lisanne53" (seattle, wa United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Invisible Art: The Legends of Movie Matte Painting (Hardcover)
I grew up in L.A. in the 50's and 60's when it was not OK to discuss matte painting as the studios did not want people to know that they really didn't go on location to film in exotic places. When people asked what my father did for a living, I said he was in "special effects." Then they would say "So, he blows up things?" "No, he paints in things that aren't there..."Now, everyone can see what it is that he did for so long. He paints in things that aren't there. The authors did a fantastic job of explaining and demonstrating the incredible art of matte painting. Now I have the book to show my kids and others who never quite understood what it was that my father did. Also, this book has a great picture of him dancing with Betty Grable!
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very interesting. The authors really know their stuff.,
This review is from: The Invisible Art: The Legends of Movie Matte Painting (Hardcover)
I bought this book to mainly look at the pictures and thats mainly what I did. The writing of the book was so well done and knowledgable that I read a bit of it also. Before looking/reading at this book I believed that matte paintings were used for primarely sci-fi, fantasy, and other incredible landscape shots. This is not the case as most matte paintings are used for houses, interiors, street scenes, and many other shots that I never would have guessed they were used for. To think that all these years I've been fooled watching so many movies and seeing matte paintings and never even realizing it. An eye opening book to say the least.
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