Tag Archives: stanley kubrick

Eye On Design: Teddy Bear From the Film A.I. Artificial Intelligence

teddy bear toy prop from ai movie photo by gail worley
Photo By Gail

Stan Winston Studio created this complex animatronic for Steven Spielberg‘s A.I. Artificial Intelligence (USA, 2001), a haunting story of a robotic child longing to be a real boy. Teddy, a loyal sidekick to David (played by Hayley Joel Osment) and likewise a robot has fifty points of motion and required at least five people to operate. In comparison, Winston Studios enormous T-Rex animatronic for the 1993 Jurassic Park has 10 fewer points of motion than this tiny bear. Computer graphics and Jack Angel‘s voice acting enhanced Teddy‘s convincing performance. The toy’s unending devotion starkly contrast with the actions of the humans in the film, who all abandon David.

Photographed in The Academy Museum in Hollywood.

Eye On Design: Aries 1-B Spaceship Model from Kubrick’s 2001

aries 1b spaceship model photo by gail worley
All Photos By Gail

Most of the props, sets, costumes, and models from the film 2001: A Apace Odyssey (1968) were intentionally destroyed by Director Stanley Kubrick to prevent their reuse in other productions; this surviving Aries 1B Spaceship Model is a rarity.
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Jonathan LeVine Gallery Presents: Mike Leavitt’s King Cuts!

Alfred Hitchcock
Alfred Hitchcock Is a Bird, by Mike Leavitt (All Photos By Gail)

You loved his homage to the contemporary art world in Art Army Royalty; you thrilled to his Star Wars character mashups with Empire Peaks; and now, Mike Leavitt returns for his third solo exhibition at Jonathan LeVine, King Cuts – honoring the artist’s obsession with 16 of the Best Film Directors Ever! And what great show it is!
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Video Clip of The Week: Metronomy, “I’m Aquarius”

As the Sun moves officially into the Sign of Aquarius on January 20th, it’s wildly appropriate to post this truly visually groundbreaking video for “I’m Aquarius” from Britain’s modern pop act, Metronomy. This song speaks to me on one level because I, too, am an Aquarius. But more than this very catchy song that reminds of me of something you might hear from MGMT or Beck, the video itself is just ridiculously great. It’s like Kubrick’s 2001: a Space Odyssey in a four minute video. Insane. “I’m Aquarius” is from Metronomy’s upcoming new album, Love Letters, which will be released on March 11th, 2014 on Elektra Records (Yeah, Baby!). Enjoy!

Metronomy Love Letters Cover Art

Chris Burden’s Metropolis II at LACMA

LACMA Chris Burden Metropolis 2 Overhead View
All Photos By Gail

While I was at the LA County Museum of Art this past December to see the Stanley Kubrick retrospective, I also enjoyed the experience of stumbling upon Chris Burden’s room-sized kinetic sculpture, Metropolis II – the focal points of which are 1,100 Hot Wheels cars.
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