Florida’s Norton Museum of Art hosts major Dwight M. Cleveland Collection film poster exhibition

By John Freeman on July 5, 2019

Barbarella film poster, 1968, United Kingdom Release

If you’re heading to Florida on holiday this summer, then you may want to pop along to the Norton Museum of Art, which is presenting the first, extensive museum exhibition of classic movie posters from one of the most prominent private collections in the world.

Coming Soon: Film Posters from the Dwight M. Cleveland Collection, comprises more than 200 posters representing comedies, musicals, Westerns, sci-fi thrillers, dramas, and others that date from the turn of the 20th century to the late 1980s.

For 39 years, collector Dwight Cleveland searched the globe for rare movie posters. What began as a love for the movies and an eye for the unique art of the film industry became the largest, most complete movie poster archive in the world, a collection running to over 35,000 items until he decided to sell some at auction in 2012.

The archive includes every Best Picture winner at the Academy Awards and the top 100 films of all time as rated by The American Film Institute and The Internet Movie Database.

The exhibition provides a colourful and comprehensive overview of the history and allure of Hollywood – and movie poster art. Posters of iconic films, such as Casablanca, Singin’ in the Rain and North by Northwest, as well as memorable cult classics including Barbarella and Attack of the 50 Foot Woman, will be featured in this exhibition.

Attack of the 50 Foot Woman, 1958, United States Release
Jailhouse Rock, 1957, United States Release
Singin’ in the Rain, 1952, United States Release
Barbarella, 1968, United Kingdom Release

The posters selected for Coming Soon illustrate the artistic techniques – pastel, oil painting, water colour, photomontage, and air brush – and printing techniques – lithography, hand-stencilling, off-set printing, and photographic reproductions – that artists have used to celebrate and promote iconic movie stars like Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton, Greta Garbo and Joan Crawford, Carry Grant and Grace Kelly, Harrison Ford, and so many others.

Coming Soon not only celebrates one collector’s passion, but also provides a rare survey of the history of film posters that have become an important fixture in popular culture.

Founded in 1941, the Norton Museum of Art is recognised for its distinguished holdings in American, European, and Chinese art, and a continually expanding presence for Photography and Contemporary art. Its masterpieces of 19th century and 20th century European painting and sculpture include works by Brancusi, Gauguin, Matisse, and Picasso, and American works by Stuart Davis, Hopper, O’Keeffe, Pollock, and Sheeler. The Norton presents special exhibitions, lectures, tours, and programs for adults and children throughout the year.

• Coming Soon: Film Posters from the Dwight M. Cleveland Collection – 12th July – 29th October 2019 Norton Museum of Art, 1450 S. Dixie Highway, West Palm Beach, FL 33401 United States | Web: www.norton.org

Operating hours: 10am to 5pm Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday; 10am to 10pm on Friday | 11am to 5pm on Sunday | Closed on Wednesdays and major holidays

• The Dwight Cleveland Poster Archive is online here | Follow Dwight on Twitter @dwightcleveland

About the Author
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John Freeman

The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.

He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.

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