‘The Art of Laika’ Auction Coming to Beverly Hills in February

Exciting news for LAIKA and stop-motion collectors: for first time ever, LAIKA is opening its archives for The Art of LAIKA, a small-scale auction that will make over 250 pieces, including puppets, models, props and art, available for sale.

The auction will be held on Thursday, February 12, 2015 by Heritage Auctions in Beverly Hills. For years, LAIKA aficionados have clamored for the studio to make some of its pieces available to purchase. Heritage Auction’s Director of Animation Art, Jim Hentz, commented on this saying:

“The studio’s legions of die-hard fans regularly ask LAIKA for the opportunity to own some of the masterfully engineered puppets, props and other artwork used to make these beloved films. So the studio is finally offering a specially curated collection of items from its production archives. This is the chance that those fans, and animation and film collectors of all stripes, have been waiting for.”

The Art of LAIKA auction will feature a variety of rare and highly collectible pieces from its films, such as (but not limited to):

From Coraline:

• Coraline production puppet in her iconic blue-starred sweater
• The Cat production puppet
• Other Mother production puppet in her elaborately realized black dress

From ParaNorman:

• Norman production puppet in his baseball shirt outfit
• Zombie Judge production puppet with fully articulated mouth and face
• Intricate large-scale production props such as Mitch’s Van and “Zombie Attack” vending machine
• Original hand-drawn Annie Award-winning character designs

From The Boxtrolls:

• Eggs and Boxtrolls production puppets complete with their “Box” outfits
• Snatcher production puppet in his exquisite hand and laser-etched velvet jacket
• Snatcher’s Mecha-Drill, at over five feet, the largest prop ever created for a stop-motion film

A portion of the proceeds will be donated to The Art of Elysium, a non-profit arts organization that “works to make art a catalyst for social change by bringing creativity and inspiration to children, artists, and various populations in need.”

For those who don’t have the funds to purchase some of the pieces, the select items will be touring for a few weeks before the auction. These preview hours are open to the public. The Art of LAIKA will be at Heritage Auctions in Dallas on January 27-29 from 11AM to 4PM, at Heritage Auctions Park Avenue on February 3-5 from 10AM to 4PM, and finally will make its last stop at Heritage Auctions Beverly Hills on February 9-12 from 11AM to 5PM.

The auction for The Art of LAIKA’s pieces will occur on February 12, 2015 at Heritage Auctions Beverly Hills, located on 9478 West Olympic Avenue. For more information, visit HA.com.

Are you going to stop by The Art of LAIKA? What LAIKA piece would you most want to purchase?