The Invisible Art [Hardcover]

Mark Cotta Vaz (Author), Craig Barron (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0811831361 | ISBN-13: 978-0811831369 | Publication Date: November 2002

Since the birth of cinema, movie-makers have created stunning special effects by combining still "matte" paintings with live-action film. Matte painting techniques were closely guarded secrets that never left the studio lot. In this unprecedented retrospective, Mark Cotta Vaz and Craig Barron reveal the history of a visual effect that has defined movies as we know them-from Gone with the Wind and Citizen Kane to Star Wars and Titanic. Lavishly illustrated, The Invisible Art showcases the finest examples of now-rare matte paintings and unveils a centurys worth of fascinating stories, legendary personalities, and cunning movie craft. Including a foreword by George Lucas and a CD-ROM that brings to life these moving pictures, this volume is packed with exclusive interviews and a narrative that time travels from the first pioneering "glass shots" to the dawn of digital technology. The definitive book for the consummate movie fan, The Invisible Art conjures a never-before-told story of film wizardry.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

"The beauty of a matte shot is that you can become God," Alfred Hitchcock said, and it's a fitting epigram to this remarkable study of a little-known facet of Hollywood illusion-the art of painting background scenery on glass. Captured by the camera and merged with live action, a distant galaxy, a lost empire or an impossible landscape can look undeniably real. And yet, among all the masters of filmic art's smoke and mirrors-the fashioners of masks and prosthetic limbs, the pyrotechnic wizards behind giant, slow motion explosions-matte painters remain some of the least appreciated artisans. (It is, note the authors, their very genius that keeps them "unsung": audiences often don't even know that what they're seeing isn't real.) This book represents the first sustained look at the art and technology of matte painting. Featuring over 400 images, plus interviews with many of the greatest matte painters themselves, it tells a story of wildly inventive artifice and myriad man-hours, offering a peek inside a guild of genuine movie magicians. As a feast of technical information and an alternative history of movies themselves, from their frontier days to the global system as it exists today, this book is a labor of both love and intelligence.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

This work explores the invention and use of glass matte paintings in film. Created as backgrounds by talented artists, these paintings were then blended with live-action shots to show, for instance, the burning of Atlanta in Gone with the Wind and the parting of the Red Sea in The Ten Commandments. Cotta Vaz and Barron have done extensive research on this little-known art form, starting with its earliest use and moving to the digital age. Much of the information is drawn from firsthand interviews with artists who have worked on major films, with the chapters on Gone with the Wind, King Kong, and earlier epics proving to be of particular interest. The color photos are beautifully reproduced on high-quality paper, and the accompanying CD shows how glass painting is used with text from the book. This is not only an "invisible art" but also, unfortunately, a dying one as digital technology slowly replaces the artists. Drawbacks to a book like this are its limited appeal, oversized format, and high price. But it is still highly recommended for academic libraries with strong film, art, and digital art programs, and other large libraries should consider it.
Rosalind Dayen, Broward Cty. South Regional Lib., Pembroke Pines, FL
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Chronicle Books (November 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811831361
• ISBN-13: 978-0811831369
• Product Dimensions: 11.8 x 10.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,430,446 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Mark Cotta Vaz is the author of over twenty-one books, including four New York Times bestsellers. His recent works include Mythic Vision: The Making of Eragon, The Spirit: The Movie Visual Companion, and the biography Living Dangerously: The Adventures of Merian C. Cooper, Creator of King Kong, which was a Los Angeles Times bestseller

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Massive Matte Attack!, September 26, 2002

By 

A. Ross (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Invisible Art (Hardcover)

For anyone interested in either painting or the history and technique of film special effects, this book (and accompanying CD-ROM) is a must. Until the last 20-25 years or so, any filmmaker needing to create impressive historical landscapes, futuristic cities, or even just more elaborate interior sets than could be affordably made, turned to the matte painter for a solution. This massive and colorful book richly chronicles the development of using oil paints on glass to create stunning illusions.

From classic films like Thief of Baghdad, The Wizard of Oz, and Citizen Kane to crowd-pleasers Mary Poppins, The Birds, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and Star Wars, the book (and CD) is filled with beautiful photos showing the matte, the "live" shot, and the composited result. What I really liked was all the photos of the artists at work both in the studios and even on location, creating relatively small paintings that would soar across screens. The final chapters cover the technique's transition to the digital age. The CD-ROM is espcially cool, as uses QuickTime movies to show how seamless the composite shots really are!

I would have liked to see samples from Blade Runner, but I suspect the writers wisely wanted to keep from overemphasizing the science-fiction genre. This is a great book that deserves to be under the Christmas trees of anyone interested in film effects.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally an explanation for what my father does!, November 13, 2003

By 

lisanne53 "lisanne53" (seattle, wa United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Invisible Art (Hardcover)

I grew up in L.A. in the 50's and 60's when it was not OK to discuss matte painting as the studios did not want people to know that they really didn't go on location to film in exotic places. When people asked what my father did for a living, I said he was in "special effects." Then they would say "So, he blows up things?" "No, he paints in things that aren't there..."

Now, everyone can see what it is that he did for so long. He paints in things that aren't there. The authors did a fantastic job of explaining and demonstrating the incredible art of matte painting. Now I have the book to show my kids and others who never quite understood what it was that my father did. Also, this book has a great picture of him dancing with Betty Grable!

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best book on visual effects in years, October 10, 2002

By 

Mike Johnson (Birmingham, AL United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Invisible Art (Hardcover)

THE INVISIBLE ART is written by two special effects experts Mark Cotta Vaz who wrote two volumes of books about Industrial Light and Magic and by Craig Barron, a master matte painter who worked for Industrial Light and Magic. Together they have collected some of the most amazing artwork ever done because this art has to be good enough to make audiences believe it is something real and not just a painting. Some of the paintings are astonishing in their realism. All the great matte painters are represented here and the book is chock full of incredible paintings and behind the scenes photos. The book is sturdy hardcover and is printed on high-quality paper so it will last a lifetime. This is a must-have book for anyone interested in movies and visual effects and the best book on special effects since the last volume on Industrial Light and Magic.