Oct 24 - Sep 5
All Day
The National Galleries of Scotland present Ray Harryhausen: Titan of Cinema, an immersive exhibition on the pioneering work of Ray Harryhausen (1920-2012), the cinematic titan whose movies shaped the face of modern cinema.
The exhibition is the largest and most comprehensive of the art of the legendary trailblazer to date, who elevated stop-motion to an art form between the 1950s and 1980s, and whose exhilarating movies inspired a generation of the world’s greatest living filmmakers, among them Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Sir Peter Jackson and Guillermo del Toro.
Ray Harryhausen was responsible for some of twentieth century cinema’s most magical moments. The exhibition will showcase the original models at the centre of these classic moments, such as the iconic skeletons from Jason and the Argonauts (1963), the cyclops from his highly influential Sinbad series of the 1950-70s, and his landmark UFOs from Earth vs the Flying Saucers (1956).
Also on display will be a young Harryhausen’s very first models, including his marionette inspired by the gorilla from Willis O’Brien’s film King Kong, as well as models from Mighty Joe Young, the first project Harryhausen and O’Brien worked on together and the film which effectively launched Harryhausen’s career.
The models are joined by a bounty of posters, memorabilia, never-seen-before photographs, storyboard illustrations and the drawings and art that inspired Harryhausen’s creatures and films, all taken from his collection.
The exhibition also traces Harryhausen’s unique connection to Scotland. Not only did Ray and his lifelong partner Diana have an affinity for Scotland, but Diana was also the great-great granddaughter of the Scottish explorer David Livingstone. One of Harryhausen’s final projects was designing a statue of the legendary missionary, which now resides in Blantyre.
As part of a series of events and initiatives under the banner #Harryhausen100, the exhibition will be accompanied by screenings, workshops, talks and more, bringing his creations to life once again and celebrating the legacy of the filmmaker who shaped cinema as we know it today.
Ray Harryhausen: Titan of Cinema is presented in collaboration with The Ray and Diana Harryhausen Foundation to celebrate what would have been his centenary birthday year. Visitors can secure their tickets via www.nationalgalleries.org