Oppan James Bond Style.
Rare costumes, atmospheric sets, iconic gadgets, props, original photographs and concept drawings — they'll all be on display when Designing 007 — Fifty Years of Bond Style opens at Melbourne Museum later this year.
Exclusive to Melbourne, the exhibition presents the craft behind the icon, focusing on the distinctly British style of the iconic movie brand and its influence on art, music, lifestyle, automotive design, travel, technology and fashion over the last half century.
Premier and Minister for the Arts Ted Baillieu and Minister for Tourism and Major Events Louise Asher have both welcomed the announcement. To their eternal credit, neither of them said anything about the exhibit leaving audiences "shaken, not stirred".
Featuring over 400 objects, Designing 007 — Fifty Years of Bond Style is curated by the Barbican Centre in London, with guest curation by fashion historian Bronwyn Cosgrave and Academy Award-winning costume designer Lindy Hemming, and designed by Ab Rogers. Between them, they've had complete access to the 23-strong archive of movies to source objects and artwork.
Highlights of the exhibition include the steel teeth worn by Richard 'Jaws' Kiel in The Spy Who Loved Me; storyboards for Diamonds Are Forever; the Anthony Sinclair overcoat worn by Sean Connery in Dr. No; the poker table from Casino Royale; multiple gadgets from Q Branch (including the attaché case given to Bond in From Russia With Love); and the 1961 United Artists/EON Productions contract to produce the James Bond film series.
Vehicles on display include the 1964 Aston Martin DB5 (!) that recently returned to the screen in Skyfall and Pierce Brosnan's BMW Motorcyle from Tomorrow Never Dies.
The exhibition — organised in partnership with EON Productions — will open on November 1.
