It's Alive! Tim Burton and the MoMA

So today I did something I've been meaning to do for months now... went to the Tim Burton exhibit at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA)!


There was NO photography of any kind inside the museum, but my camera was dead anyway so it didn't really matter. The only pictures I managed to sneak were these semi-coherent ones of the cookie-making robot from Edward Scissorhands:


But if you think about it, thats amazing. I was that close to the actual piece from the movie. The exhibit is full of fun goodies such as this, from the costumes used in Batman Returns, Mars Attacks!, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory to sketches Burton made when he was kid growing up in Burbank, California. Homework assignments, ink-and-pen doodles, big budget storyboards- you name it, this exhibit has it. I imagine that it's as close to taking a peek inside this directors head as anyone is likely to get.

My partner in crime and I wandered around the exhibit for two hours, stopping only to watch a short, Japanese film version of Hansel and Gretel Burton made in 1982. There were many various televisions displayed throughout the exhibit, showing stop animation films Burton has made as a kid, as well as various shorts that had never been released.

It was appropriately macabre, with sections lit only with a blacklight and featuring pastel drawings on black paper. Short stories accompanied by drawings are everywhere, so you quickly pick up on the tale of how a knife-happy couple like to LITERALLY hold each others hands, or a little boy tells Santa what he demands for Christmas with the help of a red-hot poker. If you aren't into the creepy or grotesque, then this show is probably not for you. (But come on. It's Tim Burton.)

The only downside was that show utilized every inch of wall and floor space... it was a tad overwhelming. And of course, the place was PACKED with people, so you have to choose which displays to look at in careful order. All in all, though, it is a marvelous exhibit... just go with plenty of time, comfortable shoes, and an easygoing attitude in case someone bumps into you (because they will). Tim Burton wouldn't want it any other way.

Since I went to the museum immediately after work, I took a change of clothes to my job and kept it simple: white button up, black blazer, gray jeans, and sneakers. I just piled on the jewelry... and the cross ring seemed more than appropriate :)







*Note: You can click to enlarge all pictures