Route 66 in the News
Petersen Museum to Feature Art from the Cars Movie
2008-03-28 09:46:03
LOS ANGELES, Calif. - This is one pit stop that won't break any records for brevity.
The Art of Cars exhibit -- which opens Saturday and runs through Nov. 2 -- at the Petersen Automotive Museum provides a one-of-a-kind look at the creative process behind "Cars," the 2006 animated movie from The Walt Disney Co. and Pixar Animation Studios.
The exhibit is the first collaboration between Pixar and the museum.
Not surprisingly, museum executive director Dick Messer came up with the idea while touring Pixar's Northern California headquarters. He's a big fan of cars and the movie.
"I saw this artwork on the wall in one of the main buildings, and it just knocked me out," Messer said.
He asked Pixar officials what would happen to it, and they said it would be archived when they put up the art from the movie "Ratatouille."
"I said, 'Why don't we put it in the Petersen museum and show the kids how the movie was made?'" Messer recalled.
And director John Lasseter became a big fan of the plan.
His film is a homage to two American icons -- Route 66 and stock-car racing. The movie, nominated for two Academy Awards, premiered at Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C.
"When we started working on 'Cars,' I knew that getting the details right would be essential to the story," Lasseter said in a statement. "The spirit of Route 66 is in every scratch on a fender and every curl of paint on a weathered billboard."
That passion is understandable.
The film was inspired by a family trip and Lasseter's love of cars. While colorful -- animated cars are the stars -- Lasseter did enlist some famous Hollywood and motor sports personalities such as Paul Newman, Mario Andretti, Richard Petty and Darrell Waltrip for some of the voice-over work.
The exhibit includes more than 60 watercolor and pastel drawings, pencil and marker sketches, and a variety of three-dimensional pieces, including:
- Life-size replicas of the movie's main characters: Lightning McQueen and his tow-truck buddy, Mater.
- Three-dimensional, small-scale models of Mater, Doc Hudson, Sally and The King, which were used as references to guide animators when drawing their characters.
- Illustrated character studies that illuminate the development of supporting characters Flo and Ramone, Luigi and Guido, Fillmore, Sarge, DJ and Wingo.
- Digital, pencil and marker sketches interpreting the cars' eyes, gestures and expressions.
- Pencil and marker drawings of the fictional Los Angeles Motor Speedway, Sally's "Cozy Cone" motel, and iconic diners, curio shops and service stations based on actual locations along Route 66, "The Mother Road."
- Pastels, watercolors and pencil sketches of such scenic vistas as Ornament Valley, Cadillac Range and Radiator Cap Butte, based on familiar landmarks such as Arizona's Monument Valley rock formations and the Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo, Texas.
Museum curator Leslie Kendall said this kind of animated art exhibit is a good fit with the museum's automotive theme.
"We think it's going to strike a chord with almost anyone," he said. "It doesn't matter how old you are, and even if you haven't seen the movie you can appreciate the art."
Gregory J. Wilcox, PressTelegram.com
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