Tuesday, February 19, 2013

New Hampshire exhibit opens tomorrow

New Hampshire Institute of Art opens its Dinotopia exhibition tomorrow, Wednesday, February 20.


The show of over 20 original Dinotopia paintings and drawings will be on view in the Amherst building through March 13.  Paintings include "Dinosaur Parade" (above, frame by Troy Stafford), "Garden of Hope," "Dinosaur Boulevard," "Small Wonder," "Up High," and "Waterfall City."

After the opening I'll give an illustrated lecture about "Worldbuilding: How to Develop a Fantasy Universe." The lecture starts at 6:30 pm and costs $20 to attend. There will be a book signing afterward.

I will also give a lecture on Thursday the 21st at WPI in Worcester, Massachusetts.
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New Hampshire Institute of Art event on Wednesday
Worcester Polytechnic Institute event on Thursday


20 comments:

Alhaitham Jassar said...

If I were that guy, I would take the painting and run away :). It's too tempting!

James Gurney said...

I know you mean that as a compliment and a joke, but it's a bit of a terrifying thought. Any art exhibit is an act of trust.

K_tigress said...

Unfortunately it has happened to a few people's works on display.

It hurts both the artist who doesn't get his/her pay and in the end the integrity of the swiper who will have to learn a hard lesson at a later date.

Mark Shasha said...

Congrats, James! Wonderful.

Anonymous said...

James,

I was wondering if there is a text version or an article of your lecture on worldbuilding somewhere? I would happily pay the $20 to hear it, but I'm on the other side of the country in the Pacific Northwest. My brother and I have been working at doing just that for a couple years, and your insights are always extremely helpful. Sorry if I'm missing something totally obvious that's already been published.

Thanks for the awesome blog! It's one of my first stops in the morning.

-Kevin

Anonymous said...

P.S: I meant to add that I would also be happy to pay for it in video/book/article form if you plan on publishing it in the future.

Thanks!

-Kevin

Keith Parker said...

@ Kevin. Actually, there was a really cool six page spread on this very topic that was in the magazine Imaginefx a few month's back that James wrote featured in issue 79...I don't know if you can get a back issue in actual print, but I believe they offer digital copies now.

James Gurney said...

Kevin, yes, as Keith said, I've talked a bit about worldbuilding in some of my ImagineFX articles. There are a lot of dimensions to it. On the blog I've talked about some science fiction ideas, like creating a "lived-in future" http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2008/09/lived-in-future-part-1.html
Also there's a bit about it in the Imaginative Realism book. But you're right: it deserves a whole video or something.

Erik Bongers said...

Congrats on the new expo.

Off-topic, here's an interesting gizmo for maquetteers: google "3D doodler"...

Connie Nobbe said...

Congratulations on that exhibit. By the way, I think the frame on your painting shown in the photo on the right, is perfect for that painting! It's like the architecture you have in the book. You must have had that custom made. I wish I could see your show, I am sure it's awesome. I really appreciate your work and this blog!

Tom Hart said...

Congratulations James! Echoing what others have mentioned here, I sure wish I could attend the exhibit and the lectures. Know that we're all there supporting you in spirit!

Alhaitham Jassar said...

Yes I meant it as a joke :) Being an artist myself I can't imagine the feeling if somebody stole a painting of mine. On another note, I wish I could attend as well! I hope someday we'll see an exhibit for you in Atlanta.. I'll be the first in line.

escuderoimagine said...

Hello

Congratulations James!

From Toledo, Spain
Álvaro

PD: Thanks for create "Color and Light" book. Now Its mi "libro de cabecera" ;)

JeffRogers said...

James, I loved your quote from Robert Louis Stephenson about art needing to be "gritty and pedestrian." but I can't find that quote anywhere! Can you share the source? Thanks!

ArtstudentConceptualStorytelling said...

Thank you so much for visiting!!! It was an excellent lecture/gallery opening and I hope you enjoyed your time here. In case you forgot the name of the thing that was mentioned, it was "Cowboy Bebop" and it's sure to entertain. Have a good one and keep at it!

-Student

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the info Keith and James. I'll get a copy of that magazine for sure. And thanks for the link to the article. I couldn't find it, myself. I knew it had to be on the blog somewhere... I'll go through Imaginative Realism again, as well. Always a good read. I pick out new things every time... Like good music, haha!

I would love to see a video like that. I would not hesitate to pay for it, too, if you offered it as a video tutorial/lecture kinda thing.

Still waiting on that Gurney Journey TV show...

Thanks!

-Kevin

Owen said...

Thank you for that lecture! It was fascinating and wonderfully inspiring! I look forward to re-immersing myself in your work now that I've got a copy of Journey to Chandara. It's been way too long since the last time I read Dinotopia.
thanks,
-Owen

James Gurney said...

Thanks, everybody!

Jeff, I can't track back to where I read that quote by Robert L. Stevenson. I copied it from something into my notebook, and now I'm wondering if it is a misquote. Here might be the actual quote: “True romantic art makes a romance of all things. It reaches into the highest abstraction of the ideal; it does not refuse the most pedestrian realism.” This comes from his essays on the art of writing.

Alvaro, you have taught me a new phrase in Spanish, thank you.

Stepherz7 said...

I cannot wait to come see this! So glad I'm visiting Vermont at this point in time, just a quick hop skip and a jump and I'll be there in NH! YAY! Sad to be missing your lecture, but we can't have it all eh?

Matthew Meyer said...

Wonderful! I wish I could visit there and see them in person, but even just seeing these photos is fantastic. I'm so used to seeing those images in the book that seeing their size relative to a human is really interesting!