Check out 2001: A Space Odyssey concept art by Harry Lange!

Every Friday I feature artwork from a classic of science fiction film. This week's "Flashback Friday" post is on 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968).

2001: A Space Odyssey is a masterpiece of science fiction cinema and one of director Stanley Kubrick's greatest works.

Harry Lange - along with Anthony Masters and Ernest Archer - was nominated for the Academy Award for "Best Art Direction" and won a BAFTA thanks to this film.

Hans "Harry" Kurt Lange, who sadly passed away in 2008, was a professional illustrator, film production designer and art director. He worked on many classics of science fiction including on all three of the Star Wars films, Superman II (1980) and The Dark Crystal (1982).

These images are from his site www.harry-lange.org.uk which is run by his son John. These illustrations were also shown in the Museum of Oxford's 2001 exhibition.

Check out the rest of the pictures after the jump (click to enlarge).


Lange, who was a former NASA illustrator, told BBC what it was like to work with Kubrick on the film.

"I was virtually the first person, and the last person, to work on the project with Stanley Kubrick. I got along with him very well. He was an absolute stickler for detail and a good taskmaster. That was fine with me, because I was new to filmmaking.

"I met Stanley through Arthur C Clarke - a friend from my NASA days - who told me he was collaborating with Kubrick on filming one of his stories.

"Late that night, I got a phone call from Stanley, saying he'd like to meet me the next morning at his penthouse overlooking Central Park.

"He looked at my artwork and said: 'I can get better illustrators in New York for a dime a dozen - but they don't have your ability plus your scientific background. Would you be interested in designing the ships for this film?'

"These had to be designed as if they could travel to the edge of the Solar System and beyond."

Compare what the suit looked like in the final film to the concept art:

See more of Harry Lange's work at www.harry-lange.org.uk.

Click on the links if you want to see more of Harry Lange's illustrations and 2001: A Space Odyssey on my blog.

What do you think of the storyboards? If you've seen 2001: A Space Odyssey what did you think?

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Official 2001: A Space Odyssey Description
A Kubrick masterpiece that spans from the dawn of man to it's title year when an alien artifact is found on the moon. An expedition is launched to Jupiter to track it's origins.

Directed by Stanley Kubrick
Cinematography by Geoffrey Unsworth
Producton Design by Ernest Archer, Anthony Masters, Harry Lange

Starring: Keir Dullea, Gary Lockwood, William Sylvester, Douglas Rain

Release date: April 2, 1968 (USA)

Official Site: http://kubrickfilms.warnerbros.com

© Copyright 1968 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Warner Bros Pictures. All rights reserved

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Check out A.I. Artificial Intelligence concept art by Chris Foss!

Every Friday I feature artwork from a classic of science fiction cinema. This week's "Flashback Friday" post is on A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001).

A.I. is a polarizing film with the critic site Rotten Tomatoes calling it "a curious, not always seamless, amalgamation of Kubrick's chilly bleakness and Spielberg's warm-hearted optimism. [The film] is, in a word, fascinating."  One of the artists who helped develop the films striking visuals for the legendary Stanley Kubrick was Chris Foss.

Christopher "Chris" F. Foss is a professional concept illustrator who's worked on Hollywood films like Dune (1977), Superman (1978) and Alien (1979)

Check out the rest of the images after the jump and find out why he got fired (click to enlarge).


While the film was written, directed and produced by Steven Spielberg, it was originally developed by Stanley Kubrick in the 1970s until his death in the 1990s. A.I. is based on Brian Aldiss' 1969 short story "Super-Toys Last All Summer Long."

Foss started working for Kubrick visualizing the film when the two split for creative differences. According to an interview with Moviefone Foss was frozen out of the project after the two disagreed on one of his paintings.

Kubrick was known as a very meticulous and abrasive director and some found him difficult to work with.
"One day I came back after what we would call a rather good lunch, and Stanley [Kubrick] is standing in my room scowling at the picture, and this has been repainted more times than you've had hot dinners." Foss recalled, "He said, 'This picture's not working,' and I absolutely blew up. I said, 'Stanley, this picture is not working because the concept is not working, because the film is not working, because there is no clear concept!' And he hit the wall and said, 'OK, no clear concept, no clear concept' and walked out. And then the next week when I called to say my car wasn't working, I was late, they said, 'Well actually, Chris, you don't need to come back.'"

These paintings are from a scene where New York is flooded.

See more of Chris Foss' work on the film at ChrisFossArt.com.

Click on the links if you want to see more of Chris Foss' work and A.I. Artificial Intelligence on my blog.

What do you think of the concept art? If you've seen A.I Artificial Intelligence what did you think?

Official A.I Artificial IntelligenceSummary
It is the near future. The polar ice caps have melted as a result of global warming leaving many coastal cities underwater. Man has created machines that are aware of their own existence to help us with the increasing environmental damage that we are doing. One of these machines, a young boy, is the first robot programmed with emotion. Now his "love" is overpowering his robotic programming. He seeks answers as to whether he can ever be more than just a machine. 

Updated ;)

directed by Stanley Kubrick
Cinematography by Janusz Kamiński
Producton Design by Rick Carter

Starring: Haley Joel Osment,  Jude Law,  Frances O'Connor,  Brendan Gleeson,  William Hurt

Release date: June 29, 2001 (USA)

Official Site: http://kubrickfilms.warnerbros.com

© Copyright 2001 Amblin Entertainment,  The Kennedy/Marshall Company, Stanley Kubrick Productions, DreamWorks Distribution (Int.),  Warner Bros., Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Warner Bros Pictures. All rights reserved

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Check out classic concept art by Ray Harryhausen!

It's Friday, so it's time to go back in time to the early days of concept design and visualization for classic science fiction films. This week I'm focussing on the work of the great stop motion animator Raymond Frederick "Ray" Harryhausen.

Besides being the pioneer of stop-motion animation he also was a respected artist who helped create stunning illustrations for his films. Sadly, he died May 7, 2013 at the age of 92.

Harryhausen was an American visual effects creator, writer, and producer who's worked on major motion pictures like The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958), Jason and the Argonauts (1963) and Clash of the Titans (1981).

Check out the rest of the pictures after the jump (click to enlarge).

Clash of the Titans (1981)

 Jason and the Argonauts (1963)

Sinbad Rogue of Mars

See more of Ray Harryhausen's work at http://www.rayharryhausen.com/

Click on the following link if you want to see more of Ray Harryhausen's work on my blog.

You may also want to buy a copy of The Art of Ray Harryhausen* which is 240 page book featuring illustrations and interviews about his work on films.



* If you buy using the Amazon links on my blog I get a small commisison which goes towards buying artbooks and DVDs for review. Thanks!

What do you think of the illustratios? Which is your favorite film ?

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