Ben Jules Carré

(1883–1978)

Ben Carré began his apprenticeship in 1900 at the Amable Atelier in Paris. Mentored by the masters of scenic painting, he joined Gaumont studios in 1906 working as an artiste-peintre décorateur. Carré was a master of perspective and an innovator in painting in color for black & white photography. Arriving in New York in 1912, he was in the vanguard of film artisans. It was at Fort Lee that he began his remarkable collaboration with French director Maurice Tourneur, making 34 pictures over a 5-year period, many now considered silent classics. In 1919 both Henri Ménessier and Ben Carré came to Hollywood, where they were recognized as the two most experienced Art Directors in the rapidly evolving industry. As a master of silent cinema, it is ironic that the one picture Carré considered forgettable, The Jazz Singer (1927), brought an end to the most visual era of cinema he loved so much.

Ben Carré was one of the most imaginative art directors in early silents. Kevin Brownlow, Film Historian & Filmmaker

Ben had worked closely with an impressive roll call of directors and cinematographers.

These pioneers were masters and innovators providing both creative and technical contributions to the first motion pictures in America.

Ben Carré (center) at Fort Lee, New Jersey, 1916.