After a trip to Hogwarts in the Snow last Christmas, I’ve wanted to see more and more of the Graphic Design from the Harry Potter Films. So when Jess told me about a new exhibition at the Coningsby Gallery, I was pretty excited: The Graphic Art of Harry Potter (ending 19th December 2015).
Watch Vlogmas Day 3 for a video tour of the exhibition 🙂
From packaging and posters, to books and magazines – the gallery is full to the brim with memorabilia from all 7 films. Usually we would only be able to catch a glimpse of these things, showing on screen for less than a second, but when displayed in the gallery there’s a lot more time to take in the details.
I loved the display of Harry’s Hogwarts acceptance letters – hanging from the ceiling as if they were ready to fall like rain and on the floor too. A really lovely touch, which I’m sure all Potter fans would appreciate.
I was also happy to see lots of the amazing traditional letterpress printed style posters; Bold and purely typographic.
The main green wall was choc-a-bloc with designs for the Weasley’s Joke Shop. Packaging and posters in bright, clashing colours – the design is edging on gaudy and hideous in my opinion, but somehow it’s still amazing. Especially the little robot (top left below) – how cute is he?
And finally I was able to get a proper look at the crazy typography from two of the most iconic graphic pieces – The Daily Prophet newspaper and the Marauder’s map:
If you couldn’t already tell, I absolutely LOVED this exhibition! If you’re a design and/or Harry Potter fan, get yourself down to the Coningsby Gallery (near Goodge Street Station) and you won’t be disappointed. The exhibition ends on the 19th December though, so you’ll have to be quick!
12 comments
Hannah
17/12/2015 at 4:02 pm
I’m not the biggest fan of Harry Potter but this looks like such a great exhibition!
Natasha Nuttall
17/12/2015 at 4:06 pm
It really is! Whether you’re a Harry Potter fan or not, I think everyone can appreciate the detail and craft that goes into making all of the props which literally feature on screen for a couple of seconds unfortunately! Thanks for stopping by… I’m now going to stalk you on Youtube ha 🙂
Erin
18/12/2015 at 12:00 pm
I know very little about Harry Potter but so many of the posters remind me of war propaganda from the First and Second world wars. It’s a style that screams out at me and it looks awesome.
comadiary
Natasha Nuttall
06/01/2016 at 2:14 pm
Completely agree Erin – they are awesome! They remind me of Propaganda too which I think is why I love them so much 🙂
Amy
18/12/2015 at 9:59 pm
I’m not a fan of Harry Potter either but this looks really cool, I like how much effort they put in to the little things for movies even though it will probably be only shown for under a second. It must be fun to design things for a make believe fantasy world. I would love to see an exhibition on Wes Anderson’s movie props; I bet that would be a feast for the eyes! x
Natasha Nuttall
06/01/2016 at 2:13 pm
I’ll let you off about the lack of HP love Amy (although what’s NOT to love about Harry Potter!!???!!) 😛 Yes, designing for film must be SO fun – I saw Annie Atkin talk about designing for Grand Budapest Hotel and it was SO fascinating. I’ve been meaning to write those notes up… so I’ll try to get around to it soon just for you 😉 x
Leanne
23/12/2015 at 2:47 pm
I had no idea it was closing so soon *weeps* x
Natasha Nuttall
06/01/2016 at 2:08 pm
Sorry you missed it Leanne – it wasn’t on for long enough if you ask me! You can ‘see’ it through my post & day 3 of my vlogmas though… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qr2wwU-mBqU 🙂
Rosanna
29/12/2015 at 4:33 pm
Thanks so much for this post Natasha! I took a spontaneous trip into London the day after you published this because I couldn’t not see this exhibition. I asked a friend who I thought would like it but who lives far from me to meet me there and we had a wonderful day out. So thank you, I caught up with someone I really missed, I got to fan girl over some Harry Potter design and we had a cheeky Nandos to top the day off- win!
Natasha Nuttall
06/01/2016 at 2:07 pm
Ohh yay – glad that you were able to catch the exhibition in person thanks to my post 😀 Any excuse for a trip to London, hey? 😉 Harry Potter + Design + Friend + Nandos = the best kind of day!
Jenna
01/01/2016 at 6:38 pm
Oh my goddddddd. This show seems like an absolute dream. I am so jealous!
Natasha Nuttall
06/01/2016 at 2:02 pm
It really was – a shame you couldn’t see it in person but you can read this post & also watch my vlogmas day 3 here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qr2wwU-mBqU 🙂