Model of The Grand Budapest Hotel among items in new Wes Anderson exhibition

RTÉ News​

30-04-2025

A candy-pink model of The Grand Budapest Hotel is among more than 600 objects that will be included in a Wes Anderson exhibition in London.
The Design Museum has collaborated with the US filmmaker for the retrospective, which includes a curated collection of original props, costumes and behind-the-scenes insights, including items from the director's personal collection.
Anderson, who celebrates his 56th birthday on Thursday, is known for his distinct style and celebrated films including Fantastic Mr Fox, The French Dispatch and 2014's The Grand Budapest Hotel.
The comedy film, which won Oscars for production and costume design, follows M Gustave, played by Ralph Fiennes, who works at a beautiful mountainside resort in Europe during the 20th century.
The new exhibition will follow a broadly chronological survey of his career, with each section dedicated to one of his films.
Highlights include the vending machines from Asteroid City, the Fendi coat worn by Gwyneth Paltrow's character in The Royal Tenenbaums, and the original stop motion puppets used to depict the sea creatures in The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou.
Dozens of costumes will also go on display including Benicio del Toro's costume as Moses Rosenthaler in The French Dispatch as well as outfits worn by Fiennes, Scarlett Johansson, Jason Schwartzman, Ben Stiller, Tilda Swinton and Owen Wilson.
An area of the retrospective will be dedicated to Anderson's stop motion films, which includ e Fantastic Mr Fox and Isle Of Dogs.
As well as finished props and sets, the exhibition will also show work-in-progress materials that demonstrate the film-making techniques used by the director in his work.
A collection of his handwritten notebooks, which show the inspirations behind his films and characters, and ideas for scripts and scenes, will also be shown.
Tim Marlow, director and chief executive of the Design Museum, said: "Wes Anderson has created some of the most visually distinctive and emotionally resonant films of the last two decades — from the melancholic charm of The Royal Tenenbaums to the youthful adventurism of Moonrise Kingdom.
"He's an utterly compelling creator of cinematic worlds, whose singular vision and attention to detail are underpinned by an acute understanding of design and craftsmanship, which is why the Design Museum is the perfect location for this landmark retrospective."
The museum opened an exhibition on director Tim Burton in 2024 which included Jenna Ortega's viral Wednesday dress and Michelle Pfeiffer's Catwoman suit.
Wes Anderson: The Archives is produced by the Design Museum, London in collaboration with La Cinematheque francaise.
The exhibition opens on 21 November 2025.