mean-streets

Martin Scorsese‘s vast knowledge and appreciation of cinema doesn’t stop at the films themselves. The director and champion of film preservation also has a gorgeous, well-rounded collection of one-sheets from around the world. If you’re currently in the director’s hometown, you’ll now have a chance to view some his personal favorites, for an exhibition of these works is on display at the Museum of Modern Art through the fall.

Featuring art from some of his well-known favorites — including The Searchers, Eyes Without a Face, The Tales of Hoffmann, Sullivan’s Travels, Black Narcissus, On the Waterfront — and many more, this 34-poster series includes only one from his own filmography: Peter Strausfeld‘s U.K. quad for Mean Streets.

“You’d hold and absorb the image in your mind’s eye,” Scorsese says in the foreword for the movie poster book Starstruck. “Part of the excitement then was in watching the actual film and comparing it with the possible or likely film you’d conjured up during the few seconds you’d looked at the poster. It had to give you some sense of the picture, but it also carried its own mystery and romance.” Check out a selection of posters below, thanks to Mubi and Quartz, for the series that coincides with screenings of some of the films.

eyes_without_a_face

point_blank

leopard_man

tmen

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Imacon Color Scanner

The-Lost-Squadron-RenePeron

Imacon Color Scanner

thelostsquadron

search-1

onthew11

taleso-1

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Scorsese Collects runs through October 25th, 2015 at MoMA.

Do you share some favorites with Scorsese?

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