The World of Tim Burton: a 'creepy, witty and visually ravishing' exhibition

Sprawling show at London's Design Museum features over 600 exhibits

Tim Burton at The World of Tim Burton exhibition at the Design Museum.
Visitors are 'fully immersed' in several of Burton's weird and wonderful worlds
(Image credit: Alamy / PA Images)

"As this delicious, suitably erratic exhibition shows, the mind of Tim Burton is a strange and wonderful place", said Nick Curtis in London's Evening Standard.

The sprawling new show at the Design Museum in London explores the life and work of the iconic filmmaker. More than 600 exhibits are on display, spanning everything from photographs and drawings to film clips, costumes and puppets. These artefacts contain "delights, not just for the fan but for anyone interested in both the elegance and the endless labour of craft".

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Visitors are "definitely immersed" in several of Burton's weird and wonderful worlds. The first room explores his childhood growing up in the oppressive suburbs of Burbank, where the "solitary misfit found refuge in his drawing". "Teenage creations" on display include "The Giant Zlig" – an unpublished illustrated children's book that Burton submitted to Walt Disney Publications.

All in all, said Moore, "The World of Tim Burton" shines a light on the "phenomenal output of a singular creative mind" – "one that has given considerable pleasure to what are now generations of audiences".

Irenie Forshaw is a features writer at The Week, covering arts, culture and travel. She began her career in journalism at Leeds University, where she wrote for the student newspaper, The Gryphon, before working at The Guardian and The New Statesman Group. Irenie then became a senior writer at Elite Traveler, where she oversaw The Experts column.