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To dream is one thing. To create that dream with single-minded artistic determination is
another. James Gurney is that rare artist for whom childhood fantasy became an adult reality,
with all his experiences and accomplishments contributing to the knowledge needed to make
the dream come true. The concept is simplicity itself: what if dinosaurs evolved into the
intellectual equals of man and remained alive on a single, mythical island? Not a utopia, but a
Dinotopia, with a science and lifestyle far more Earth-friendly than our own. To create this
world, Gurney needed knowledge…a lot of knowledge. He graduated from the University of
California at Berkeley with a degree in anthropology, then studied further at the Pasadena Art
Center College of Design. Following years of free-spirited travel and commercial artwork with
fellow artist Thomas Kinkaide, Gurney continued his creative quest with more than seventy
paintings for book covers, but really reveled in his illustrations of ancient worlds for National
Geographic magazine. Finally, he was ready to realize his dream, and Dinotopia was created
through a series of prints, posters and a book. More works of art and books have followed
(Dinotopia: The World Beneath and more recently Dinotopia: First Flight), in addition to many
other tie-in products. A made-for-network television epic is also planned. Gurney has
remained on the forefront of dinosaur research, making his creatures scrupulously accurate
in addition to being wise and ecologically correct.
another. James Gurney is that rare artist for whom childhood fantasy became an adult reality,
with all his experiences and accomplishments contributing to the knowledge needed to make
the dream come true. The concept is simplicity itself: what if dinosaurs evolved into the
intellectual equals of man and remained alive on a single, mythical island? Not a utopia, but a
Dinotopia, with a science and lifestyle far more Earth-friendly than our own. To create this
world, Gurney needed knowledge…a lot of knowledge. He graduated from the University of
California at Berkeley with a degree in anthropology, then studied further at the Pasadena Art
Center College of Design. Following years of free-spirited travel and commercial artwork with
fellow artist Thomas Kinkaide, Gurney continued his creative quest with more than seventy
paintings for book covers, but really reveled in his illustrations of ancient worlds for National
Geographic magazine. Finally, he was ready to realize his dream, and Dinotopia was created
through a series of prints, posters and a book. More works of art and books have followed
(Dinotopia: The World Beneath and more recently Dinotopia: First Flight), in addition to many
other tie-in products. A made-for-network television epic is also planned. Gurney has
remained on the forefront of dinosaur research, making his creatures scrupulously accurate
in addition to being wise and ecologically correct.
James Gurney
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