Designing 007 – Fifty Years of Bond Style at the BARBICAN

Emerging from the sea singing calypso ‘Under the Mango Tree’ Honey (Ursula Andress) is surprised to hear someone taking up the song refrain.
Copyright Notice – © 1962 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation. All rights reserved.

The white bikini worn by Ursula Andress in one of cinema’s most celebrated scenes, on loan from Planet Hollywood International Inc., joins more than 400 Bond archive items for the first time alongside a faithful recreation of the trunks Sean Connery wore in THUNDERBALL in a new and highly anticipated Barbican exhibition commemorating the 50th anniversary of the James Bond film franchise from 1962’s DR NO to this year’s SKYFALL.

Atlantis is Strombergs base, a futuristic creation, a prototype for an underwater city, it can survive completely submerged or it can rise up out of the water like a huge metallic spider.
Copyright Notice – © 1977 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation. All rights reserved.

The items will be displayed alongside those which they later inspired – the orange bikini worn by Halle Berry in DIE ANOTHER DAY and Daniel Craig’s sky blue trunks from CASINO ROYALE, and are among 400 works comprising the Designing 007 – Fifty Years of Bond Style exhibition which opens at London’s Barbican Centre next month.

Harry Lange’s artwork for exterior space station, Moonraker
© 1979 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation. All rights reserved

Sean Connery and author Ian Fleming discuss the character of James Bond while filming an interior scene for “Dr No” at Pinewood Studios.
Copyright Notice – © 1962 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation. All rights reserved

Standing at the foot of the staircase, Bond (PIERCE BROSNAN) watches Elektra. Copyright Notice – ©1999 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation. All rights reserved

Camille Montes played by Olga Kurylenko, with Daniel Craig as James Bond. Copyright Notice – Quantum of Solace © 2008 Danjaq, LLC, United Artists Corporation, Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Credit – EON Productions

Daniel Craig picture: Casino Royale © 2006 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation and Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. All rights reserved.

The Barbican has joined forces with EON Productions to create a unique exhibition curated by the Barbican, guest-curated by fashion historian Bronwyn Cosgrave and Oscar®-winning costume designer Lindy Hemming and designed by Ab Rogers.

With unprecedented access to EON’s production archive, Designing 007 – Fifty Years of Bond Style is a multi-sensory experience where screen icons, costumes, production design, automobiles, gadgets, special effects, graphic design, exotic locations, weapons, stunts and props combine to immerse the audience in the creation and development of Bond style over its auspicious 50 year history. Exhibits on display also include Scaramanga’s Golden Gun from THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN, Oddjob’s steel-rimmed bowler hat and the proto-type of Rosa Klebb’s deadly flick-knife shoes worn in FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE, Tee-Hee’s metal arm from LIVE AND LET DIE and Jaws’ fearsome teeth which first appeared in THE SPY WHO LOVED ME.

Zorin (CHRISTOPHER WALKEN) and May Day (GRACE JONES) at the French Chateau.

Dr No’s Underground Apt, Living Room. Signed Ken Adam
Copyright Notice – © 1962 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation. All rights reserved

Jinx (HALLE BERRY) has her first encounter with James Bond in the beach bar in Cuba. Copyright Notice – © 2002 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation. All rights reserved

Elektra King (SOPHIE MARCEAU) in her red casino dress.
Copyright Notice – ©1999 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation. All rights reserved

Among the other specially commissioned costume recreations overseen by Lindy Hemming are Goldfinger’s golden dinner jacket, Pussy Galore’s golden waistcoat and the suit Sean Connery was wearing when he first appeared on screen in DR NO, together with originals of Roger Moore’s white tuxedo from OCTOPUSSY and Spacesuit from MOONRAKER.
Vehicles and gadgets on display include the 1964 Aston Martin DB5 which famously returned to the screen in GOLDENEYE; Pierce Brosnan’s BMW motorcycle from TOMORROW NEVER DIES; the attaché case featured in FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE and Pierce Brosnan’s state of the art Ericsson mobile phone from TOMORROW NEVER DIES.

Fort Knox by Ken Adam
Copyright Notice – © 1964 Danjaq, LLC & United Artists Corporation. All rights reserved.

 

Jaws’ teeth sketch from The Spy Who Loved Me
1977 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation. All rights reserved

 

Scaramanga’s Golden Gun.
Copyright Notice – © 1974 Danjaq, LLC and United Artsts Corporation. All rights reserved.

 

Oddjob’s hat, Goldfinger
© 1964 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation. All rights reserved

 

Goldfinger’s Pilot Pussy Galore (Honor Blackman) & Bond (Sean Connery) © 1964 Danjaq, LLC & United Artists Corporation. All rights reserved

They take their place alongside original graphic drawings and models including the design for the Jetpack piloted by Bond in THUNDERBALL; the storyboard for the action sequence in YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE featuring mini-helicopter Little Nellie, together with the miniature Wet Nellie Lotus Esprit used for filming in THE SPY WHO LOVED ME.

The exhibition will transform many of the Barbican spaces including The Silk Street Entrance, the Curve gallery, the Pit theatre and some of the public foyer spaces to take visitors on a journey through a dozen themed rooms and environments reflecting 50 years of Bond style.

The exhibition will tour internationally over a three year period.

For planning your visit and for more information please visit the exhibition’s website

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