Bob Gardiner (animator)

Bob Gardiner
Gardiner, c. 1978
Born
James Robbins Gardiner

(1951-03-19)March 19, 1951
Torrance, California, US
DiedApril 21, 2005(2005-04-21) (aged 54)
Grass Valley, California, US

James Robbins "Bob" Gardiner (March 19, 1951 – April 21, 2005) was an American artist, painter, cartoonist, animator, holographer, musician, storyteller, and comedy writer.[1][2] He invented the stop-motion 3-D clay animation technique which his collaborator Will Vinton would later market as Claymation, although Bob preferred the term Sculptimation for his frame-by-frame method of sculpting plasticine clay characters and sets.

He and Vinton shared the 1974 Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film for Closed Mondays.[3] The film was preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2012.[4]

Gardiner committed suicide on April 21, 2005, while living at the Everhart Hotel in downtown Grass Valley.[5]

Filmography

  • Closed Mondays (1974), writer, art direction, and sculptimation
  • Mountain Music (1975), art direction and sculptimation (uncredited)[6]

Graphic art

1979 advertising posters by Bob Gardiner
  • Advertising poster for Bob Gardiner's multi-media event, January 25, 1979, at Strutters' Hall, Portland, OR.
    Advertising poster for Bob Gardiner's multi-media event, January 25, 1979, at Strutters' Hall, Portland, OR.
  • Advertising poster for Bob Gardiner's multi-media event, February 1, 1979, at Strutters' Hall, Portland, OR.
    Advertising poster for Bob Gardiner's multi-media event, February 1, 1979, at Strutters' Hall, Portland, OR.
  • Advertising poster for Bob Gardiner's multi-media event, July 27-29 & August 3-5, 1979, at The Alligator Palace Vaudeville Theatre, La Conner, WA.
    Advertising poster for Bob Gardiner's multi-media event, July 27-29 & August 3-5, 1979, at The Alligator Palace Vaudeville Theatre, La Conner, WA.
  • Advertising poster for Bob Gardiner's multi-media event, October 25,1979, at Merchants' Public House, Portland, OR.
    Advertising poster for Bob Gardiner's multi-media event, October 25,1979, at Merchants' Public House, Portland, OR.
  • Advertising poster for Bob Gardiner's multi-media fundraiser event on behalf of The Food Front, November 28, 1979, at The Earth Tavern, Portland, OR.
    Advertising poster for Bob Gardiner's multi-media fundraiser event on behalf of The Food Front, November 28, 1979, at The Earth Tavern, Portland, OR.
Lost mural by Bob Gardiner
  • Lost mural painted by Bob Gardiner on exterior wall of a Portland repertory theater no longer in business, circa early 1980s.
    Lost mural painted by Bob Gardiner on exterior wall of a Portland repertory theater no longer in business, circa early 1980s.

Accolades

Gardiner and Vinton won the Oscar for Best Animated Short in 1975[7] for Closed Mondays (1974).[8][9]

References

  1. ^ James Gardiner Obituary -CA|San Francisco Chronicle
  2. ^ James Robbins 'Bob' Gardiner -- Oscar winner - SFGate
  3. ^ Nordheimer, Jon (April 9, 1975). "'Godfather, Part II' Wins 7 Oscars". The New York Times. p. 28.
  4. ^ "Preserved Projects". Academy Film Archive.
  5. ^ "An artist's life and sudden death". 28 April 2005.
  6. ^ Oddball Films (2015-11-19). Oddball Films: Tunes and Toons: Animated Adventures in Musicland - Thur. Nov. 19th - 8PM. Oddball Films, 19 November 2015. Retrieved from Oddball Films.
  7. ^ 1975|Oscars.org
  8. ^ "The Portland DIY Clay Experiment That Changed Animation Forever.TV|OPB". Archived from the original on 2019-01-05. Retrieved 2018-09-09.
  9. ^ Short Film Winners: 1975 Oscars