Postponed by the pandemic, a major new exhibition about stop-motion supremo Ray Harryhausen has finally opened at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art in Edinburgh. “Ray Harryhausen: Titan of Cinema” bills itself as “the largest and widest-ranging exhibition of his work ever seen.”
Marking what would have been Harryhausen’s centenary, “Titan of Cinema” showcases his models and armatures alongside concept art, storyboards, test footage, and his personal tools. The exhibition covers the 16 features that made his name — Jason and the Argonauts, Mighty Joe Young, the Sinbad films, Clash of the Titans — as well as unrealized projects.
The American artist’s legacy is already secure: his groundbreaking use of stop-motion special effects in monster movies and mythological epics has influenced everyone from James Cameron and Peter Jackson to Henry Selick and Nick Park, not to mention generations of sfx and vfx artists. Steven Spielberg called him “the dean of special effects.”