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Forty Years On Festival: Spotlight on Graham Bebbington
Ahead of the Forty Years On exhibition, we take a look at the work of Newport College of Art graduate, animator Graham Bebbington.
Forty Years On, an exhibition celebrating forty years of Newport College of Art is set to take place in the city in 2024, featuring the work of staff and students from the College’s history. In the lead up to the exhibition, we’ll be taking a closer look at the work of the some of the featured artists, starting with animator, Graham Bebbington.
A former student of Graphic Design at Newport College, Graham Bebbington has come a long way since starting his degree at the College. Having specialized in 2D effects animation, he has become world renowned in the field, moving from FX supervisor on Space Jam in London (Premier Films for Warner Brothers) to being recruited as a journeyman animator on Fantasia 2000 for Walt Disney Feature Animation in Los Angeles.
It was in this field that Graham’s skill in animation propelled his career forward. John Leatherbarrow of Premier Films, has described how “in a highly specialized industry. Graham is a professional of rare ability”.
In 2012 Graham was invited to animate on The Snowman and the Snowdog, thirty years after working on the original Snowman film and thirty six years after starting his degree in Graphic Design at Newport College of Art in 1976. For Graham, that starting point paved the way for a career in the industry he loved.
“Newport gave me the space to explore a new world of art" says Graham. “The College showed me different ways of seeing through drawing, painting, photograph, calligraphy, typography and, more importantly for me, the moving image.”
“Excellent tutors and a group of very creative and supportive students during the three years there gave me the passion, curiosity and perseverance to pursue my dream.”
Graham Bebbington’s work will be on show as part of the Newport Forty Years On exhibition, which takes place from 3rd February - 1 June 2024 in Newport Museum and Art Gallery, further details are available via the exhibition website.
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