Kirsten sends this along: We thought you and other ringers might want to know about an art exhibit we have coming up with Jeremy Bennett (Visual Director on LOTR and King Kong). It opens on Friday October 10th 6-9pm (Jeremy will be at the opening!) here in Seattle. He will be exhibiting seven new paintings based off the work he did on Mordor. The exhibit will be at the Roq La Rue Gallery (2312 2nd Ave Seattle WA 98121), visit www.roqlarue.com for more info or call (206)374-8977. Here is his art statement:
“For me conceptualizing shots in Mordor was a double edged sword, it was at an intense time in the production schedule and there was no room for error. It was fairly stressful to say the least but It seemed that for every problem that needed solving, wonderfully creative solutions were being offered up by all involved…” The many people that had spent years together helping Peter and Fran craft these films seemed to be running on pure adrenalin and with the finish line in sight the task of destroying a small gold ring was not going to stop us.
I was living on the south coast of Wellington at the harbour entrance and surfing when not at work, I knew the coastline well and enjoyed the balance in past times. Therefore my solution to the pressure cooker was to bring my worlds together and Mordor gave me the opportunity. Every rock and boulder in every matte painting in mordor was found within a mile of my house so to see the shots years later the resonance they bring is sweet. To add to that it seemed that everybody was carrying the weight of Frodo’s quest so it was fitting that our job only became more challenging towards the end. That dark shadow land I think can symbolize every bodies struggle and is one I certainly focus on.
To sit and paint these forms again and contemplate palates or compositions that weren’t used is a nice way to drift back and relive a special time.
Painting I believe should be infused with skill, memory and a desire to share experience, this is my humble attempt to capture those qualities”.
~Jeremy Bennett
