The World of Tim Burton

Tim Burton is one of those artists whose works will continue to be passed down from generation to generation. His creations, as peculiar and unconventional as they may be, have asserted themselves as cinema classics, transcending time and space. In the already record-breaking The World of Tim Burton, which has achieved the highest advance ticket sales for an exhibition ever at the Design Museum, eighteen of his films are individually spotlighted, featuring props, set designs, early drawings, and costumes. Martians, monsters, misfits, ghosts, and ghouls are just some of the characters that inhabit his wild, funny, and twisted imagination, now on display — just in time for Halloween.

Burton himself took time off from filming to personally inaugurate the show in his adopted home city on Wednesday, ahead of the public opening on Friday, October 29th. He praised the “curational feng shui” and said the organizers “did a beautiful job.” “It’s like walking through kind of a funhouse, which is nice,” he told reporters. The expanded and reimagined journey through five remarkable decades of creativity also highlights Burton’s long-term collaborations with designers across costume, set, and production design, even featuring an outfit from Alexander McQueen’s Fall/Winter 2002 collection, named Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, which was inspired by Burton’s drawings. “We had very generous access to Tim’s archive in London, stuffed full of thousands of drawings, storyboards from stop-motion films, sketches, character notes, [and] poems,” said exhibition curator Maria McLintock.

The journey into the filmmaker’s “funhouse” is accompanied by a custom soundscape created by sound designer Tomi Rose to fully immerse visitors in The World of Tim Burton. The exhibition is divided into different sections, guiding us through various eras of Burton’s successful career, starting with Suburban Beginnings. This section displays his earliest artistic endeavors from his personal archives, showcasing how early in his career he was able to establish his distinct and acclaimed aesthetic. Visitors can also see a recreation of Burton’s studio, offering a “rare private glimpse into his creative process,” with sketches and models scattered throughout.

The exhibition continues into Crafting Imagination, where stop-motion animation is highlighted; Building Worlds, where thirteen key feature films and the TV series Wednesday are celebrated through the lens of design, all while visitors walk through landscapes reminiscent of his filmography. Next is Drawing Narratives, where Burton’s prolific output as an artist and storyteller is showcased, before ending with Beyond Film, which explores his projects outside of cinema.

While for Burton it may have been a strange experience – he admitted to being unable to look too closely at the items on display, comparing it to “seeing your dirty laundry put on the walls” – film fanatics, designers, and even families can indulge in his fantastical worlds. From the earliest sketches of beloved characters, like the Martians from Mars Attacks!, to those from Corpse Bride and The Nightmare Before Christmas, visitors are reminded why he is regarded as such a groundbreaking artist.

Some costume highlights include Johnny Depp’s Edward Scissorhands talons, Michelle Pfeiffer’s black latex Catwoman suit from Batman Returns, and Jenna Ortega’s viral Rave’N dance dress from Wednesday, which is on display for the first time. When asked about his favorite item in the exhibition, Burton told METAL that “each time it’s a different thing,” though he ultimately chose The Carousel, saying, “it’s the best it’s ever looked,” and we couldn’t take our eyes off it.

It comes as no surprise that decades of iconic work, drawings, oddities, props, puppets, set designs, and costumes cannot be done justice through text alone. Tim Marlow, CEO and Director of the Design Museum, told reporters the exhibition has “generated cinematic blockbuster levels of interest and excitement before it has even opened.” With too many reasons to count, it's best to go see it for yourself.