Guillermo del Toro's At Home with Monsters Exhibit

Angel of Death from Hellboy II greets you as you enter the exhibit.

I was finally able to get over to LACMA (the Los Angeles County Museum of Art) to enter the world of Guillermo del Toro through his "At Home with Monsters" exhibit. I love many of del Toro's films and other projects he has been involved with including Cronos (1993), The Devil’s Backbone (2001), Hellboy (2004), Pan’s Labyrinth (2006), and Crimson Peak (2015). His influences range from the Victorian era, to sci-fi and comics, to horror to his own tumultuous childhood.

The "At Home with Monsters" exhibit boasts works of art from del Toro's own personal collection as well as props and items from his films and is broken into different sections that reflect his influences. The exhibition begins with a section on "Childhood and Innocence," before moving through the galleries "Victoriana," "Magic, Alchemy, and the Occult," "Movies, Comics, Pop Culture," "Frankenstein and Horror," "Freaks and Monsters," "Death and the Afterlife", and there is even a "Rain Room" with storm clouds projected on the ceiling and rain beating against some gothic windows while lighting flashes. The visit was enthralling, and to be surrounding by so much gorgeous artwork was exhilarating!

Tickets for the special exhibition were $25 (which included admission to the other parts of the museum as well, barring their special rain room exhibits) and though the weekend crowds were a bit much at times, I took my time to absorb all of the wondrous art exhibited in the space and made sure to wander through the space several times so I didn't miss anything!

I took a ton of photos (yes, photography was allowed!), but wanted to share some of my favorites below:

Entrance to the exhibit at the Art of the America's Building at LACMA

At Home With Monsters exhibition entrance with the Angel of Death from

Hellboy II

Statue of the Pale Man from Pan's Labyrinth

Statue of Pan from Pan's Labyrinth

Concept art for The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad 
by Mary Blair (1949)

Concept art for Sleeping Beauty by Eyvind Earle (1959)

Crimson Peak costumes by Kate Hawley - from back to front: Lucille Sharpe's
 cyan dress, Edith Cushing's nightgown, and Lucille Sharpe's crimson dress

Dress worn by the ghost of Edith Cushing's mother from Crimson Peak,
by Kate Hawley

Daniel Horne's Lady Beatrice Sharpe (2015) from Crimson Peak

Travis Louie - clockwise from top left: Amelia, Queen of the Sea Monkeys,
 circa 1879, The Coachman and His Brother, and The Strangler (2009)

"Gothic" Painting - Bohemia (now Czech Republic), 1879

Henry Fuseli's Satan and Death with Sin Intervening (1799-1800)

Stephen Gammell's illustration for Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, c. 1980

Stephen Gammell's illustration for Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, c. 1980

Stephen Gammell's illustration for Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, c. 1980

Stephen Gammell's illustration for Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, c. 1980

Cabinets of Curiosities

Thomas Kuebler's Schlitzie (2010) and Johnny Eck, Half Boy (2011) inspired
 by 1932's Freaks

Todd Ray/Venice Beach Freakshow Collection

Jack Pierce and Boris Karloff sculpture by Mike Hill

The Evil Eye (2010) by Chet Czar

Santi from The Devil's Backbone

Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine collection

Ray Harryhausen sculpture by Mike Hill

Medical plates of various diseases

Nosferatu puppet on a grandfather clock

Once Upon a Midnight Dreary (Edgar Allan Poe) by Thomas Kuebler (2013)

Portrait of Edgar Allan Poe (2008) and Portrait of H.P. Lovecraft (2014) by
Michael Deas

Charles Dickens bust and various Victorian artifacts

Bride of Frankenstein, Frankenstein's monster, and Dr. Pretorius sculptures

by Mike Hill

More cabinets filled with curiosities, including a wood box full of glass eyeballs

and a Frankenstein's monster bust and Bride of Frankenstein and Frankenstein's

monster sculpture

Arm of Hosts by Dave Cooper (2007)

Assorted artworks, including Edward Gorey pieces in the two middle frames

Various puppets, busts, sculptures, dolls, etc. 

A big wall mural of Bleak House, Guillermo del Toro's residence
where he houses all his spooky treasures!

This exhibit will be at LACMA until November 27th, 2016, so hurry and go see this fantastical collection of art and artifacts! If you're like me, you will be swooning over this exhibit and wishing these pieces were displayed in your own home.

For more info, visit the LACMA website!