Pixar Down Under!

Over 500 original works of art, including sketches, paintings and sculptures will go on display at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image in a new exhibition celebrating Pixar Animation Studios creators of Toy Story, Finding Nemo and The Incredibles opening 28 June in an Australian exclusive.

Pixar: 20 Years of Animation will features paintings, concept art, sculptures, and an array of digital installations revealing the intricate, hands-on processes behind Pixar’s computer-generated films popular around the world with both children and adults.

John Lasseter, Chief Creative Officer of Disney and Pixar Animation Studios said “We are thrilled ACMI is honouring the artists of Pixar with this exhibition. Our artists work in traditional media – hand drawings, painting, sculpture – as well as the computer, to create our films.

“In our world the computer is a tool, the same as a pencil or a brush. Our artists create so much beautiful art for each film that most people never get to see, so we are very grateful to ACMI for giving Australians a rare chance to see behind the scenes.”

Tony Sweeney, Director, ACMI said “ACMI is thrilled to be presenting this blockbuster exhibition under the umbrella of Melbourne Winter Masterpieces. ACMI continues to bring to Victoria the works of the masters of the world of film, television and new media and is delighted to host this exhibition.

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“Pixar has pioneered a revolution in theatrical animation and has been accorded the extremely rare distinction of exhibiting at one of the most important cultural institutions in the world, the Museum of Modern Art in New York.”

At the heart of Pixar: 20 Years of Animation are the drawings, sketches, paintings and sculptures that scores of artists have created over the past two decades to devise the groundbreaking computer-generated image animation for which Pixar has become internationally recognised.

The exhibition also features two audio-visual marvels created especially for this exhibition. A spectacular Toy Story zoetrope – a cinema device that creates the optical illusion of static images in motion – which features characters from both Toy Story films and Artscape – an 11-minute audio-visual installation which utilises digital technology to immerse viewers into various works on view in the exhibition.

The works in Pixar: 20 Years of Animation reveal the depth of artistic exploration that Pixar artists bring to character, world and story development, as well as to the colour palette and distinct visual treatment that defines each individual work.

To accompany the exhibition, ACMI will present a series of workshops, talks and activities for a range of audiences and a special film season dedicated to Pixar films.

Pixar: 20 Years of Animation
Thursday 28 June – Sunday 14 October
Exhibition open daily
Tickets > Full $15, Concession $10 Family (2 adults and 2 concessions) $44
Australian Centre for the Moving Image
Federation Square, Flinders Street, Melbourne
www.acmi.net.au

All of the Pixar artwork and digital media are on loan from the archives of Pixar Animation Studios.
The Pixar: 20 Years of Animation exhibition in Australia is managed by Barbican Art Gallery, owned and funded by the Corporation of London.

About Pixar Animation Studios
Pixar Animation Studios combines creative and technical artistry to create original stories in the medium of computer animation. Pixar has created six of the most successful and beloved animated films of all time: Toy Story, A Bug’s Life, Toy Story 2, Monsters, Inc., Finding Nemo, The Incredibles and Cars. Pixar has won 20 Academy Awards® and its six films have grossed more than $4 billion at the worldwide box office to date. The studio will premiere its next film, Ratatouille at ACMI on August 13.