Wednesday, August 12,1998
Tolucan Times

Galerie Morpheus Exhibits Fine Art of Christophe Vacher
By Elizabeth McCallan

Christophe Vacher, a resident of Toluca Lake, recently signed a 2-year contract with the prestigious Galerie Morpheus in Beverly Hills. It is the leading gallery and publisher of fine art of the surreal and fantastique.

The charming and attractive 32-year-old French native will be guest of honor on August 21, from 7 pm until 11 pm when Galerie
Morpheus will exhibit his work during a reception to which the public is invited. To attend call James R. Cowan, President of Morpheus International at (310) 859-2557.

The multi-talented Christophe, whose surreal landscapes are reminiscent of Salvador Dali, has created backgrounds and visual development for Walt Disney Feature Animation since 1993. Vacher worked at Disney's Paris-based animation studio for three years, where he painted backgrounds for such animated films as "The Hunchback of Notre Dame", "Runaway Brain",and served as head of background for the 1995 feature, "A Goofy Movie". Relocating to California in1996, he continued his association with Disney, where his most recent credits have included painting backgrounds for "Hercules" and contributing visual development for the studio's ambitious new in-home computer animated feature- "Dinosaur". Among his latest assignments he had a key role in developing the look of two upcoming Disney animated featured: "Tarzan" and the powerful Stravinsky finale for "Fantasia 2000".

Prior to joining Disney, Vacher worked as a freelance illustrator for several prestigious French architecture and animation clients and served a two-year stint with IDDH Company as a layout artist, character designer and background supervisor. He also worked for Typhoon Studios (key backgrounds for "The Tales of Pere Castor") and Le DAF Studio (color studies for "Bamboo Bears").
Additionally, his credits in background painting and visual development include numerous animated programs for European television such as "Prince Valiant", "Back to the Future" and "Ninja Turtles in Europe".

Previously, Vacher's personal art work has been exhibited in several prominent French galleries including the Cultural Center for Universities of Clermont-Ferraud and the Grand Palais in Paris.

Christophe's mother, father, 4 brothers and 2 sisters live in France. He has a Black Belt in martial arts, enjoys horseback riding in Griffith Park, rollerblading at the beach and hiking Southern California's local trails.

Artexpo will display Vacher's fine art this October 24-27 when they bring their colossal art exhibit to the Los Angeles Convention Center.