Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/859699
P E R S P E C T I V E | S E P T E M B E R / O C TO B E R 2 0 1 7 17 F E A T U R E D P R O J E C T U N I O N S E T & P R O P S H O P t h e f w o r d P r o d u c t i o n D e s i g n e r : D a v e E d w a r d s A r t D i r e c t o r : R o b e r t F r y e Meredyth Mindte meredyth@centerlinescenery.com 818-252-7467 centerlinescenery.com 8238 Lankershim Blvd. N. Hollywood CA 91605 p h o t o c r e d i t : r o b e r t f r y e Opposite page, top to bottom: The opening reception at the Guild's Gallery 800 in the NoHo Arts District; Rosemarie Knopka, Joseph Francuz, Michael Denering, Will Ferrell, Karen Maness and Don MacDonald; Jim Fiorito and dooner. Above: Gallery 800's photo collage wall. backdrops are rapidly in danger of becoming obsolete. Additionally, most of the remaining Scenic Artists are now at retirement age, making it important to capture these histories in order to preserve the legacy of the craft. Although painted backings haven't been extensively produced since the late 1990s, The Art of the Hollywood Backdrop maintains that painted backdrops still have an important place in cinema. The Art Directors Guild and Karen Maness reached out to many Scenic Artists, in addition to the families of those mentioned in Karen and Richard's book, in order to put on an exhibition that would celebrate the work they have done outside of their professional film and television Scenic Design careers. Carefully curated by Abra Brayman, the exhibition displayed the work of significant artists central to The Art of the Hollywood Backdrop, including Duncan Spencer, Ben Carré, George Gibson, Wilbur Ferrell, the Coakley family and the Strang family. Alongside these were paintings by the current generation of Scenic Artists, including Michael Denering, David Dies, Marion Dies, Paul Kocalis, Stasys Pinkus, Don MacDonald, Bridget Duffy, John Moffitt and Leslie Diller Zollo. The exhibition also featured a number of enlightening behind-the-scenes photographs of the artists at work, many of which were lent by Joseph Francuz, Locke Koon, Catherine Koon and Bridget Duffy. The event allowed the current generation of Scenic Artists to reconnect with past colleagues, not only admiring the work of one another, but also that of previous mentors in the craft whose paintings have never all been under one roof before. Karen Maness was in attendance signing copies of The Art of the Hollywood Backdrop for visitors, many of whom had contributed work both to the book and the exhibition. One of the great highlights of the evening was when the Art Directors Guild presented a Service Award from the Scenic, Title and Graphic Arts Craft to Jim Fiorito, a moment he was happily able to share with many of his professional peers. Will Ferrell later said of the event: "A great time was had by anyone who was lucky enough to be there."