Poster Per Diem: James Gilleard's "Creature from the Black Lagoon" Movie Poster

If you visit this site with any regularity, you already know I tend to write reviews for film and television inspired prints that are either currently on sale or are about to go on sale. And while I'll still be pouring the majority of my efforts into those sorts of posts, my daily "Poster Per Diem" feature will focus on awesome prints that have since sold out, never existed in the first place (AKA concept posters) or just bear mentioning. In other words: this is my chance to say, "I never got a chance, for whatever reason, to write about you on this here website, but I think you're really purty and I want to let the world know." Or something like that. Oh, and Per diem is latin for "per day" or "each day."

Creature from the Black Lagoon Movie Poster
James Gilleard
420 mm x 839 mm (Giclée) - Signed
£80 - Open Edition

I've been having such a good time posting all of the Universal Monster movie inspired prints from Mondo's latest show, that I just couldn't let this one slip by unnoticed. While Gilleard's Creature from the Black Lagoon poster wasn't part of last month's exhibition, it's been a print I've long enjoyed. If you'd like to pick one up, head on over to James Gilleard's online store, where it's currently available. The artwork costs £80 (about $127) and measures 420 mm x 839 mm (approximately 16.5" x 33"). For more info on James, vist jamesgilleard.com and follow @jgilleard on Twitter.

Heads Up: Jay Shaw's Universal Monster Movie Posters

Mondo Gallery's recent Universal Monster show has already given us a ton of amazing artwork. From Martin Ansin's jaw-dropping Frankenstein to Laurent Durieux's five incredible posters, I would have been content with what Mondo had already given us. But wait, there's more! It turns out Posterocalypse favorite Jay Shaw also created some fantastic looking monster movie prints and (lucky for you and I) they'll be available through Mondo at a random time later today!

The Mummy Movie Poster
Jay Shaw
18" x 24" (Screen Print) - Numbered
$35 - Limited to 175

Shaw's Mummy print is absolutely wonderful. It captures the somber tone of the film and is jam-packed with tons of tiny details. Case in point: it took me at least three long stares before I even noticed the face formed by the falling sand. Bonkers! Shaw's poster measures 18" x 24" and is limited to an edition of 175.

Creature from the Black Lagoon Movie Poster
Jay Shaw
18" x 24" (Screen Print) - Numbered
$35 - Limited to 175

I'm torn between Jay's Creature from the Black Lagoon print and his Mummy poster. Thankfully, no one has a gun pointed at my head forcing me to choose a favorite. (Wouldn't that be crazy, though?) Both are exceptional, and offer up great interpretations of the films while wholly remaining Jay Shaw originals. The Creature from the Black Lagoon poster will be available on Thursday (11/8) for $35 at a random time.

The Wolf Man Movie Poster
Jay Shaw
18" x 24" (Screen Print) - Numbered
$35 - Limited to 175

And last, but certainly not least, we have Shaw's The Wolf Man. What better way to celebrate the Universal classic than by focusing on Chaney Jr.'s hairy mug? This poster reminds me just how amazing Jack Pierce and his exceptional monster make-up was and still is. The Wolf Man print will cost $35 and is limited to an edition of 175. It will be available sometime on Thursday (11/8).

To learn more about artist Jay Shaw, check out kingdomofnonsense.com and follow him on Twitter @tweetofnonsense. If you're liking these prints, but have no idea why these movies are all that important, pick up Universal Classic Monsters: The Essential Collection. You won't be sorry. And of course, be sure to follow @monodnews for specific drop times.

Heads Up: Laurent Durieux's Universal Monsters Movie Posters

If you've kept up with the comings and goings of the movie poster community, you will have no doubt heard about one of the coolest shows to ever be exhibited. And wouldn't you know it, the cracker jacks in Austin who kick started this whole poster movement thing are behind it. I'm talking about Mondo's Universal Monsters show, and boy have I got some great news for you. Laurent Durieux's classic monster movie prints will be available through Mondo at a random time later today. Say, what? Yes, yes, you heard me correctly! (Just an FYI, that was the "great news" I teased earlier.) Check these beautiful prints below.

The Wolf Man Movie Poster
Laurent Durieux
24" x 36" (Screen Print) - Numbered
$50 - Limited to 380

The Mummy Movie Poster
Laurent Durieux
24" x 36" (Screen Print) - Numbered
$50 - Limited to 400

Frankenstein Movie Poster
Laurent Durieux
21" x 36" (Screen Print) - Numbered
$50 - Limited to 375

Dracula Movie Poster
Laurent Durieux
24" x 36" (Screen Print) - Numbered
$50 - Limited to 350

Creature from the Black Lagoon Movie Poster
Laurent Durieux
24" x 36" (Screen Print) - Numbered
$50 - Limited to 475

I'm torn between Laurent's Creature from the Black Lagoon, The Mummy, and The Wolf Man, but I'm ultimately leaning towards Karloff's Imhotep. To see more of the artist's work, be sure to visit his Flickr page. And for all drop related info, follow @mondonews on Twitter. One more thing: the Universal Classic Monsters Blu-ray collection is awesome! Go buy it!

Martin Ansin's "Dracula" Movie Posters

I've said it before and I'll say it again: Martin Ansin is, hands down, my favorite artist. His aesthetic choices are usually perfectly in line with my tastes and he always manages to make bridging the gap between the fantastical and the photorealistic look easy. Much to my (and probably your) relief, Ansin's previous entry in Mondo's Universal Horror series, the jaw-dropping Mummy posters, were not to be his last, as Justin revealed Martin's beautiful Dracula prints earlier today.

Dracula Movie Poster (Regular)
Martin Ansin
24" x 36" - Numbered
$45 - Limited to 350

Dracula Movie Poster (Metallic Variant)
Martin Ansin
24" x 36" - Numbered
$85 - Limited to 100

Martin Ansin is stupefyingly great at taking a character's countenance and creating intricate, organic, complicated roadmaps. Take, for example, the mysterious visage of Bela Lugosi's Dracula. Look at the way Martin creates depth and texture with thick, wavy strokes, and carefully injects shadow to flesh out the Count's stronger facial features. I'm reminded of how Tyler Stout is able to place blocks within shaded blocks and create amazingly realistic figures, but with Ansin's art, the subjects appear even more lifelike, almost to the point where motion is discernable. I guess what I'm trying to say, albeit not very eloquently, is that on top of his already gorgeous designs, there's something lively (and clearly somewhat undefinable) about the work of Martin Ansin. With that said, you'll probably be shocked to hear that this isn't my favorite Ansin piece - that honor belongs to his Mummy posters. Still, this is another knockout print, that's both a wonderful tribute to and reflection on (insert vampire pun) a Hollywood classic. And holy crap, how about that wood coffin variant? Perfection.

Dracula Movie Poster (Wood Coffin Variant)
Martin Ansin
21" x 36" - Numbered
$135 - Limited to 75

Martin Ansin's Dracula movie posters will be available on Friday (12/30) through Mondo at a random time. Both posters measure 24" x 36" and are hand numbered. The regular red version of the print will cost $45 and is limited to 350, while the metallic ink variant is limited to 100 and will cost $85. The uber limited wood coffin variant measures 21" x 36", costs $135 and is limited to an edition of 75. To get the exact drop time be sure to follow @MondoNews on Twitter. To learn more about the talented Mr. Ansin be sure to visit his website at martinansin.com and follow him @martinansin. Good luck everyone!

Kevin Tong's "The Invisible Man" Movie Poster

UPDATE 1 (8/22): Kevin Tong's remaining The Invisible Man prints will be available at a random time tomorrow (8/23) through his online store. The regular version (silver) will cost $80 and the variant (gold) will cost $100. Good luck!

I don't have much more time before I pass out from exhaustion, but I wanted to quickly talk about Kevin Tong's The Invisible Man poster.

The Invisible Man Movie Posters
Kevin Tong
24" x 36"
$45 - Limited of 285

This is one print I was able to pick up at SDCC (I guess they didn't sell out in San Diego) and I can confidently say it's as beautiful as it looks. In a lot of ways this poster reminds me of something Rich Kelly would do due to the pencil-like sketching pattern that makes up Claude Rains' suit and bandages. I'll have to post some close-up shots of this print on my Tumblr, but for the purposes of this quick review, I'll just say that the image almost looks like it was intricately designed on a chalkboard. That may not sound like a compliment, but it is - I've never seen anything like it.

Kevin Tong's The Invisible Man poster will be available through Mondo tomorrow / later this morning (8/11) at a random time. The poster measures 24" x 36", costs $45 and is limited to an edition of 285. Just a heads up, they sold a pretty decent amount of these at SDCC, so there's a limited amount to begin with and I'm sure they'll go really fast. To keep up with the release info I recommend following @MondoNews. And to learn more about the artist Kevin Tong head over to tragicsunshine.com. Have a great night!

Martin Ansin's "Mummy" Movie Posters

Disclaimer: Martin Ansin is my absolute favorite artist working in the poster world today. I pretty much love everything the guy has ever done (especially his Mondo work) and am quite unabashed in my admiration and completely biased obsession with his artistic creations.

Alright, with that out of the way I think I can start talking objectively about Ansin's excellent Mummy poster.

The Mummy Movie Poster (Regular)
Martin Ansin
24" x 36"
$45 - Limited to 385

The Mummy Movie Poster (Variant with Hieroglyphs)
Martin Ansin
24" x 36"
$75 - Limited to 150

As some of you may know, I was at this year's SDCC and one of the many benefits of going to the recent Comic-Con was that, for the first time ever, Mondo had a booth on the exhibit floor. This was incredibly exciting both as a poster lover and film fan (kind of sounds like flim-flam), but was also cause for some apprehension. You see, Mondo released two amazing Martin Ansin wood prints during SDCC, but no paper-based posters from the artist. I knew in my heart of hearts that surely Justin Ishmael and gang would eventually release these posters in a more traditional paper form, but still, there was that seed of doubt that by not purchasing the wood prints I was somehow missing out on a once-in-a-lifetime chance to own Ansin-created Mummy and Planet of the Apes artwork. As it turns out, I was right about the The Mummy as Mondo has announced two breathtaking additions to Mondo's Universal Horror poster series (Wolf Man, Bride of Frankenstein, The Invisible Man, and now The Mummy).

Excessive exposition aside, these posters are fantastic and it's clear Martin is at the top of his game. Just take a look at the insane amount of detail on Imhotep's face - you can see every nook and cranny of the mummy's withered and desiccated visage. And while I think I like the regular version best due to its arid yellow hue, I've got a ton of respect for the truly unique variant poster, which offers more than just a change in color. I'll let Mr. Ansin explain in greater detail (taken from Martin's website):

"A variant version has the film title and credits carefully translated to ancient egyptian hieroglyphs by an egyptologist at the University of Chicago, which is completely epic."

Martin Ansin's Mummy posters will be available tomorrow (8/11) through Mondo at a random time. Both posters measure 24" x 36", with the regular edition costing $45 and limited to 385, and the variant edition costing $75 and limited to 150. Be sure to follow @MondoNews for the exact drop time and visit martinansin.com to see the rest of Martin's portfolio.

"Dracula" Movie Poster by Aaron Horkey and Vania Zouravliov

Alright, I may have been a little hard on Aaron Horkey with my review of his True Grit poster. I admit it. But I can say without any doubt that his and Vania Zouravliov's Dracula poster is downright horrifying! In a good way, a very, very good way! I'm not really familiar with Vania's work, but the combination of his illustrations and Horkey's lettering work amazingly well together. This is seriously one of the creepiest, most beautiful things I've ever seen.

Dracula - Regular Edition

Dracula - Variant Edition

On my first viewing, the thing that immediately struck me was the crazy amount of detail poured into Helen Chandler's (is that Helen Chandler?) face. That crazy-meets-weary grimace is so photo realistic I had to do a double take (and I'm still not entirely sure). Add to that, the billowing plumes of fog, lively flora and Bela Lugosi's vampire bat (AKA Dracula) in the upper right corner and you've got an image that absolutely bursts off the page. These posters seem so authentically vintage, you could easily imagine them printed as illustrations in the original 1897 novel.

The coloring is another beast entirely. While the blacks, whites and reds of the regular version are stunning to take in, it's the browns, golds and grays of the variant that are truly sublime. The brassy sepia-toned palette completely fits with what I would imagine a repressed Victorian culture would secretly adore. It's spot on!

Finally, I've really got to hand it to Horkey. Not that he did anything wrong with the True Grit poster (he didn't, really), but in my opinion he has totally redeemed himself. The Dracula title and cast credits really complete what would have been a beautiful art print and transform it into a kick-ass and frightening movie poster. Well done sirs.

Both of these posters will be available at a random time tomorrow (1/12) through Mondo's online store. The regular version measures 23.75" x 34", comes in an edition of 330 and will cost $60. While the variant comes in an edition of 65 for $110. It's also interesting to note that these posters were printed by Burlesque, not by Mondo's usual printing partner, D&L Screen Printing. I wonder what that's about? To check out Vania Zouravliov's other work you can visit his portfolio or his online store.