Tim Burton's Imagination

Enter into the fantastical horror filled mind of Tim Burton. He is probably the first artist to inspire me, besides my Mother. My brother and I used to rent A Nightmare Before Christmas (produced by Burton), over and over again from the local video rental store. There was a gap in time when I had forgotten about the movie, and when I re-watched it, I couldn't believe that I hadn't been scared of the characters. They were fabulously terrifying, yet welcoming.  Over the years, I've been enthralled with his artwork. Not only his movies and short films, but also his drawings and other personal art. 

Tim Burton

Timothy Walter Burton was born in Burbank, California on August 25, 1958. He grew up being inspired by horror films of Roger Corman, many featuring the well known on-screen villain Vincent Price. He enrolled in the California Institute of Arts, majoring in animation. He graduated in 1980. He worked for Walt Disney Studios for less than a year and stuck out on his own. In 1982 he released his award winning short, Vincent, which was a tribute to his childhood idol. Burton currently resides in London with Helena Bonham Carter and their two children.

Victor and Sparky

His second popular short was entitled Frankenweenie, a twist on the classic Frankenstein. Frankenweenie  is now a full length movie, released in 2012. After he left Disney, Warner Brothers Pictures decided to have him direct Pee-Wee's Big Adventure.  Burton went on to other well known films such as Beetlejuice (1988), Edward Scissorhands (1990), and Batman (1989). 

Beetlejuice with an upset stomach.

He's had a tremendous amount of success in many of his movies. He also tends to work with some of the same people in many of his works. Not because he is using favorites, but because their skills fit with Burton's works at the time. Danny Elfman, an American composer, has music in many of Burton's films. Helena Bonham Carter is also the chosen actress in several films. Probably the most associated actor in Burton's films is Johnny Depp. Although some people criticize him for the recurring actors and composer, I feel that it works well for his work.

Teenager: an awkward period of life.

His website  begins with his character, Stain Boy, in which you use the arrow keys to explore the site. He has a public gallery of works as well as a private gallery. To access the private gallery, one must enter an email address to receive updates.

Stain Boy

Throughout his artwork there is a deep sense of horror and fantasy. The sketchy quality of his works on paper makes them childlike. He was known to convey that people only stop being artists when they start expecting something. His instructors at the Institute told him that "if you like to draw, just draw." This is something I can relate to, since I've been drawing since I could hold a crayon. Even if your stuff doesn't turn out the way you wanted, or you hate it when it's done, the point is to do what you like to do.

Burton has also written a handful of poems, the most famous one entitled Victor, which is about a little boy named Victor Malloy whom wishes to be like Vincent Price. He has turned it into an animated short narrated by Vincent Price, himself. Be has also has several books published, one being

Time Burton married a German artist in 1989 named Lena Gieseke. They split shortly after the filming of Batman Returns. He was then left her for Lisa Marie whom he dated for a few years and placed in four of his films. During the production of Planet of the Apes, he met Helena Bonham Carter. Burton resides in London with Bonham Carter and their two children. They have been involved since 2001, and their son and daughter were born in 2003 and 2007, respectively.

Helena Bonham Carter, Nell Burton, Billy Raymond Burton, Tim Burton

To keep an updated tab on Tim Burton and his works. you can find most of it on the Tim Burton Collective.

*I do NOT own any of the above images*

 

References: Burton Collective: http://www.timburtoncollective.com/vincent.html - MoMa exhibit: http://www.moma.org/interactives/exhibitions/2009/timburton/  - biography: http://www.biography.com/people/tim-burton-9542431 - official facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TimBurton - NYTimes article: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/23/movies/tim-burton-at-home-in-his-own-head.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 - fan-media site: http://tim-burton.org/poems.php