If you hate the idea of going to a museum because you think it's all Old Masters portraits and landscape paintings, the Stanley Kubrick exhibit at LACMA might have you seeing things in a new light. Come view photographs, scripts, lenses, cameras, set models, costumes, props and, of course, film at this extensive, 13,000-square-foot retrospective of the auteur's work. There are large-scale photos and set pieces that will captivate you, but some of our favorite smaller pieces include: the voluminous scrapbook made by Gertrude Kubrick (aka "mom") of young Stanley's early photojournalism work; the type-written letters Kubrick received from various religious institutions condemning Lolita; the giant, shiny knife that Jack Nicholson used in that famous door-slashing scene in The Shining (Kubrick took the knife from his wife Christiane's kitchen drawer).
The exhibition is co-presented with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and demonstrates LACMA's commitment to exploring the impact of fim on art history. The retrospective begins with the photographs Kubrick took early on for Look magazine in the 1940s and surverys his career over the course of 50 years, including his technological accomplishments, special effects, an alternate beginning for 2001: A Space Odyssey and even films he was never able to complete. (Kubrick passed away of a heart attack in 1999, around the time Eyes Wide Shut was released.)
Make sure to reserve a time to see the ticketed exhibition, which runs through June 2013 and will include numerous accompanying film-related events.