The Unknown
Batiste Madalena
American, 1902–1988
1927
A hand-painted tempera film poster from 1927 that magnifies a costumed performer's anguished face to advertise the silent movie titled "The Unknown."
Confronting and almost cinematic, the enormous pallid face—rendered in cool, purple-tinged shadows with a bandana, earring, a single tear, and the bold yellow title tucked in the lower corner—stares past you with intense, theatrical feeling.
An example of early twentieth-century commercial painting, it shows how poster artists turned melodramatic silent-film emotion into striking, painterly imagery that helped build star appeal and draw audiences into cinemas.
Medium
Tempera on poster board
Dimensions
Overall: 42 3/4 x 24" (108.6 x 61 cm)
Classification
Department
Credit
Courtesy of Judith and Steven Katten
Accession
F1929
Palette
Exhibitions
