Bidding for this lot will end on Wednesday, March 25th. The auction will begin at 9:30 AM (PDT) / 12:30 PM (EDT) / 4:30 PM (GMT) and lots are sold sequentially via live auctioneer; tune in to the live streaming broadcast on auction day to follow the pace. Note other lots in the auction may close on Thursday, March 26th or Friday, March 27th.

A matte painting of Gozer's Temple ontop of Dana Barrett's (Sigourney Weaver) apartment building by chief matte painter Matthew Yuricich for Ivan Reitman's Ghostbusters. After infiltrating Dana's apartment on 550 Central Park West, Gozer the Gozerian (Slavitza Jovan) took the form of a gigantic Stay Puft Marshmallow Man and wreaked havoc on New York City before the Ghostbusters destroyed him. While it was painted for Ghostbusters, the shot it was ultimately intended for wasn't used in the final cut, though similar shots of the apartment building with Gozer temple on top do appear in the film.

Shots of Dana's building as seen from street level were achieved by optically blending live-action plates with Yuricich's final "invisible" matte paintings, so-called for their use in trick photography. Yuricich created more than two dozen matte-painted shots for the film, with the assistance of Michele Moen and Disney veteran Deno Ganakes under Richard Edlund's BOSS Film Studios.

The film's groundbreaking visual effects were ultimately nominated for an Academy Award®.

This ornately detailed painting of the building's increasingly supernatural-looking top portion required a delicate color palette in order to leave the eye unable to determine what is painted versus what is photographed. It is rendered in mixed media on masonite with tape applied along the top edge. The board exhibits scuffs, minor marks, and light edge wear from production use and storage. Dimensions: 76.5" x 38.25" x 1" (194 cm x 97 cm x 2.5 cm)

This lot is currently located in Propstore's London facility and will ship directly to the Buyer from the London facility. Buyer will be responsible for all shipping and import charges from the UK. Please inquire for additional information.

Sold without copyright; see notice in the Buyer's Guide.

Estimate: $18,000 - 36,000
Matthew "Matt" Yuricich was an American artist regarded among the foremost matte painters in the history of world cinema. Born in Ohio on January 19, 1923 to Croatian emigres, Yuricich studied Fine Arts at Miami University after serving in the US Navy during World War II. Upon completing his education, he quickly found work in the effects departments of Hollywood studios, excelling quickly as a painter on the productions of post-war classics like Call Me Madam, Forbidden Planet, and Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. Soon, Yuricich developed a personal specialty in color-matching background paintings to color-shifting film stock, essential for integrating mattes seamlessly into live-action photography. Indeed, the techniques he applied towards this task, including his signature so-called "glass shots" - in which he painted plates of glass to set in front of the camera - put him in demand with some of the most powerful directors of the era.

In 1959, Yuricich worked as a matte artist on two films that would permanently secure his place in the pantheon: For Alfred Hitchcock's North by Northwest, he created the illusion of a modernist Frank Lloyd Wright-style home built atop Mount Rushmore for the rip-roaring climax; then in William Wyler's equally seminal Ben-Hur, he painted mattes simulating the presence of tens of thousands of ancient audience members for the popular chase scenes. Both films were immediately hailed as visual masterpieces for their groundbreaking photographic effects.

Over the next three decades, Yuricich contributed mattes to many of the best-known and most acclaimed movies ever made, among them Mutiny on the Bounty, The Poseidon Adventure, Westworld, The Towering Inferno, Young Frankenstein, Ghostbusters, Die Hard, and Field of Dreams. In 1976, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences awarded Yuricich, L.B. Abbott, and Glen Robinson a Special Achievement Award for their work on Logan's Run. The following year, Matt, his brother Richard, and several other effects visionaries, including Douglas Trumbull, received a competitive nomination for Best Visual Effects for Close Encounters of the Third Kind.

Yuricich also emerged as a committed teacher and advocate for the field of matte painting at large while working as the chief matte artist for companies including Entertainment Effects Group (EEG), its follow-up Boss Film Corporation, and Video Image throughout the 1980s and 90s. In 2006, Miami University bequeathed its Distinguished Achievement Award to Yuricich for his accomplishments as an educator and visual effects artist. He died six years later having completed matte paintings for more than 70 film and television projects.

More than 30 years since his last produced work in film, The Matthew Yuricich Collection now looks to honor the visionary creativity of its namesake. Assembled by Propstore in direct collaboration with the Yuricich family, it features paintings from several classics of American cinema. From Logan's Run to Star Trek: The Motion Picture to Dances with Wolves, this rare set of artworks is designed to offer both legacy collectors of fine art and casual movie fans alike rare access to one of Hollywood's great masters. The Matthew Yuricich Collection is a tribute not only to the eternal magnificence of this captivating form, but to the Silver Screen on a global scale.