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It did not disappoint.
On the contrary, there was so much to see in this enormous collection of artwork, film, costume, models, notebooks, props etc, etc, it was often overwhelming....but in a very good way.
I was a little put off initially by the huge crowds of people but in actuality the slow-moving snake of visitors lining the gallery walls kept my excitement level in check and prevented me from running around like a maniac from one object to another. As it was, I was trying very hard not to look ahead to see what was coming up and so was surprised and delighted every few minutes! There was ample time to examine each piece in glorious detail.
While the big, drawcard pieces (costumes from "Alice", Batman, Edward Scissorhands etc.) were wonderful (Alice's shoes and the Mad Hatter's hat were particular favourites of mine), it was the smaller individual pieces, in particular the drawings and personal notebooks and letters, which gave me the most joy and the most insight. To see Tim's progression through his early years with the influences of Dr Suess, MAD Magazine and illustrators such as Gerald Scarfe and Ralph Steadman (other favorites of mine) was fascinating and certainly something I could relate to personally, having grown up on these same influences myself.
There were also a large number of models built by Rick Heinrichs which were beautiful even in their decay (I thought my heart was going to beat right out of my chest when I saw the puppets of 'Vincent' and the long-suffering Abercrombie wearing the experimental headgear!) and the puppets for 'Corpse Bride', built by Mackinnon & Saunders were, without a doubt, some of the most exquisite objects I have ever seen.
Overall, it was the sheer volume of work by this man who is only a couple of years older than me, that was most inspiring. People like to imagine that to be an artist means that you must exist in a continual state of inspiration and creativity. That may be true for some (lucky them!),
but for most of us inspiration is minor compared to the amount of actual work that needs to be done to realise those precious ideas. Tim Burton has done the hard yards. He's weathered rejection, criticism and the worst kind of 'art snobbery' to bring to fruition his unique vision of an imperfect and totally fascinating world. It's plain, if the huge attendance numbers for this exhibition are anything to go by, that this is an artist who connects with people on a very human level. He certainly does with me.
(Sadly, cameras weren't allowed inside the exhibition, so the photos above are all I have to show.)
Till next time.
oh I would have loved to go see it! it sounds simply wonderful!!
ReplyDeleteMarisa :)
What fun! I can only imagine how inspiring and how exciting it was to view this exhibit!
ReplyDeleteI wish I can sometime see something like this. It must have been so fun!
ReplyDeleteWhat you say is very interesting. When you name Tim Burton everyone thinks of success but what most don't know is that only a very little percentage of his numerous projects will ever see the light. Which proves to me that doing what you love to do is the real success.
Utterly fabulous! I am so jealous that you have seen this exhibition, it must have been an awesome experience in the true sense of the word.
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