In pictures: Cosgrove Hall story told at Manchester exhibition
- Published
An exhibition of photographs and figures that show Manchester's contribution to the art of animation has gone on display at the city's Museum of Science and Industry (MOSI). There is an emphasis on the work of Cosgrove Hall, the much-loved production company set up by Brian Cosgrove and Mark Hall.
Creating The Illusion shows off not just the work of Cosgrove and Hall, but also of the talented animators who came to work at their now defunct company, including Barry Purves, who has since gone on to make an animated film about the Russian composer Tchaikovsky.
Purves was the first animator of the Toad puppet in the animation of Wind In The Willows, which the company made for ITV. He passed the role on to Paul Berry, who Mark Hall described as the best animator the company ever had.
The exhibition contains pieces that show Berry's work from across his career and includes his university thesis and his student cards.
Berry went on to work on several films, including Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas and Harry Selick's James and the Giant Peach.
MOSI's Jan Hicks said the exhibition, which also includes models such as a puppet from an animation which was shown during ITV's children's programme Rainbow, was a "told an important story in the region's history - the North West is home to a significant number of animation companies, and they're here because of Cosgrove Hall".
- Published18 November 2011