BUYER
BEWARE
MENTOR
HUEBNER was a prolific artist and turned out literally thousands
of designs. He is known around the world and is considered an
Icon in the Motion Picture Industry. His peers call him "The
King of the Illustrators." Globally renowned, Ridley Scott,
a man of huge artistic integrity, calls Mentor, "The Patron
Saint of the Illustrators".
Mentor
was an innovator. He never 'copied' anyone's work or followed
anyone's lead. He was filled to overflow with creativity, talent,
remarkable ability and a never ending parade of ideas.
He
is an Icon in the film industry. His art work and his name are
often 'borrowed' by lessor talents, and although it's said that
imitation is the highest form of flattery, there are certain limits.
For instance, one pretty strong limitation is the Copy Right Law.
If
work is 'imitated' in a learning process -- good. If it's imitated
and then passed off as having been accomplished by Mentor, and
it isn't his work, that's a big "No. No."
But
what if someone didn't imitate Mentor's work, because they haven't
the expertise to accomplish it ~ and instead merely placed Mentor's
name on their own 'art'? That's not the same as saying 'his' work
is theirs. That's a little different. I've seen this done. What's
that type of 'fakery' called? I think it's called, "Looking
for trouble".
E-Bay
told me that they were able to only handle an illegal swiping
of someone's creative effort. Like when a 'swiper' identifies
someone else's art as their own. Plagiarism. It's better known.
That's a more standard method of 'stealing'. But they were mystified
as to what to do if the art was said to belong to the artist and
didn't. They couldn't understand why anyone would want to 'give'
credit instead of take it. Well, I could understand that. I could
very much understand that. It's stealing a name. The E-Bay man
in New York said "Get a lawyer". I did.
Mentor was a masterful Pro at producing all forms of art. He could
Paint and draw in any style. And along with his 'regular-ordinary-run-of-the-mill-day
to day' spectacular Conceptual Designs, for his Motion Picture
work, he was also frequently asked to 'imitate' the work or style
of a Master, for use on camera. As a sort of a prop that was part
of the story line. Mentor could do anything a Producer requested.
He was very good, he was an expert, he was disciplined, and he
could produce work that ran the gamut of all the art styles throughout
the centuries. But that's different. He didn't pass off a van
Gogh done for a movie, as a real van Gogh, and then try to sell
it. Nor did the Producers or the Motion Picture Studios sell a
fraudulent van Gogh.
When
Mentor died, March 19, 2001, at dawn, almost within minutes, his
name appeared on websites, everywhere. That night, feeling lost,
I scanned the Internet looking for his name and found it listed
several thousands of times. The links grew as time went on.
Most
of the sites that linked to his name, displayed warm sentiments.
They expressed admiration, and were clearly wanting only to pay
tribute to him and to his talent. I am greatly touched by all
the spontaneous outpourings. Mentor would have gotten quite a
kick out of the goings on.
But
I found a couple of others that shocked me.
His
death was communicated around the world, through the Industry
Trade newspapers and magazines and word of mouth through Production
Location Crews. I was bombarded by emails, phone calls, letters
and cables. Everyone offered condolences. Evidently his personality
and his art work and his specific movies had struck a nerve. He
wasn't a lead actor. So what was it?
Well,
first of all I think it was because he was a 'Real Artist'. The
kind of artist we read about in books and see depicted in movies.
He was a living breathing, real live Kirk Douglas, living his
own personal true life version of Van Gogh's, "LUST FOR LIFE".
Mentor was a romantic character. And for all his 'realness' he
was nevertheless 'unreal' to many people. Fans saw him in a certain
light of fantasy as did fellow artists, from both of Mentor's
Fields: Fine Arts and Films.
The
World-Wide sincere and heartfelt words and prayers expressed in
his honor, through the vehicle of Buddhist, Hindu, Christian and
Judaic faiths, gave our family tremendous spiritual comfort. I
was surprised at the diversification of his 'fans', and quite
impressed that they were scattered all about, in the far distant
corners of the world. Buddhists in Japan, Hindus in Michigan,
Catholics in Alhambra and Jews in New York, all prayed for him.
An unusual assortment of 'natives' from here and there seem to
know him. For some reason when I heard that he had fans in New
Zealand blew my mind. Another group that caused me to become emotional,
was a BLADE RUNNER Fan Club that organized watching the film in
his honor at the same time, around the world. Mentor had a lot
of fans.
There
were many strangers who only knew him through his movies. But
there were many people who had met him face to face. Mentor's
250 Feature Films, 50 Solo Art Exhibits, movie locations around
the world, and teaching drawing (for fun) at prestigious art institutes
for 25 years, produced a lot or contacts. He met many several
hundreds of people. He was well liked. At his funeral the church
was packed.
But,
as always, when someone like Mentor leaves us, not all the 'mourners'
are altruistic. A very short time later it came to my attention
that some people were attempting to capitalize upon his popularity.
A lot of art showed up. Everywhere.
If
you find yourself about to purchase a work of art that is said
to have been created by Mentor ~ feel free to ask me about its
validity. I will happily authenticate it. Of course casually,
and without any Certified Documentation. But my approval will
be a plus and sufficient inspiration for your expenditure. I can't
promise to do this indefinitely. I may have to stop helping if
it gets too out of hand. I am a writer and I need to write. But
I feel strongly about doing this at this time.
I
suggest that first you photograph the work in a very good light.
Have the seller do this for you. Then scan it. I would appreciate
it if you copy and paste the image into an email. Please don't
send attachments or downloads. I won't open them. Just simple
emails. And if they are authentic, the seller won't hesitate to
help you. They will want the proof too.
I
will be able to tell you if Mentor worked on a particular production
or not, or did or did not create the drawing or painting being
considered.
If
you find Mentor's artwork for sale on any other website -- question
it. No painting of Mentor's is ever sold from any other website.
Not ever. That's proof right there that it isn't his work. The
Motion Picture Designs you discover, may or may not be his and
may or may not be Studio Xeroxes. And believe me, the posters
on so many sites, attributed to him, aren't. He never in a million
years would have created Posters of Doorways or Gates from around
the world. That sort of thing would have bored him out of his
mind.
Many
times Mentor's work was 'ripped off', and we wouldn't know how.
We'd find his art in Art Galleries, Auction Houses, and huge Painting
Shows, in places like the Pasadena Civic Center or the Palladium
in Hollywood. We were surprised they were openly being sold without
our knowledge. The Australian Director, Bruce Berseford (Driving
Miss Daisy) purchased one of Mentor's paintings, from a show of
this type. A highly respected exhibit. We were glad he was the
one who lucked into it. But we had no idea how it got there. It
was authentic. But some are not.
Sometimes,
someone would try get a job in the Film Industry with bits and
pieces of Mentor's art work that had been obtained in devious
ways. It's sort of complimentary. Job hunters, wanting to work
in a Studio Art Department, would show a Producer Mentor's work
as their own. A Producer would call and say, "Hey, Mentor,
a guy was in today looking for a job with your drawings....."
Mentor's
work is clearly recognizable. Producers and Directors who are
familiar with it don't mistake it. The way an artist paints and
draws is as unique as handwriting. It's as unique as fingerprints.
Mentor's work is very distinctive.
On
the Internet, in Art Galleries, and even in some Antique Shops,
some of Mentor's art work, his real art work, has surfaced. It's
come out of all the corners and trunks and back closets and off
of living room walls. It's because everyone believes that after
an artist dies the value of his work increases as it's finite.
This
idea has energized disreputable types. Even though much of the
art circling around could be Mentor's work. But some of it could
not be. Although if salvaged from studio trash, and merely discarded
roughs, and unfinished, still it is his work. But sadly some are
fakes. These fakes most likely are the work of artists who lack
integrity, have some art know how, and want to capitalize upon
Mentor's reputation. Sometimes they copy his work, either free
hand or by tracing over a copy. Many Studio Xeroxes always floated
around the production companies and were easy to accumulate.
I
don't want any of that stuff credited to my husband. And it's
not fair when an enthusiastic fan who admires Mentor's work and
wants to build a collection ~ gets cheated.
As
soon as I see an example of art attributed to Mentor, I can immediately
know if it is or isn't his. I invite you to contact me for advice
about his work. I want to preserve the integrity of Mentor's image.
During
an unspecified period of time, I shall continue to advise uninformed
art lovers and novice collectors, whether a work of art is Mentor's
creation or not, through email only and without any charge for
my assistance.
Email:
Louise@MentorHuebnerArt.com

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Louise
Huebner. (c) 2003
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