Soggettiva Gallery inaugurates the new year and the 2025 season with an unmissable tribute to Stanley Kubrick with an extraordinary exhibition: “STANLEY KUBRICK 2025 – A dream is never just a dream”, a journey through the cinematic legacy of one of the greatest directors of all time. From January 8 to March 9, 2025, the gallery will host 50 unreleased alternative movie posters in limited edition, inspired by Kubrick’s filmography and created by over 20 international artists. The exhibition is born from the idea that Kubrick’s films still speak with impressive lucidity of our present. Each of his works contains a vision of the future, a lesson, a warning. The artists involved have reinterpreted this legacy through their works, offering a personal perspective on timeless themes such as power, war, identity. His influence also extends to aesthetics and customs, intervening on language and the collective imagination.

Barry Lyndon and The Shining: anniversaries of two timeless masterpieces

2025 marks two important anniversaries in Kubrick’s career: the 50th anniversary of Barry Lyndon, a work that, although considered his true masterpiece by critics, has often been overshadowed by the media success of his most famous titles, including The Shining. The latter, which is celebrating its 45th anniversary, is still at the top of the charts of the scariest films of all time, a work that redefined the horror genre with its stylistic perfection. The exhibition will also pay homage to the director’s entire production; from 2001: A Space Odyssey to A Clockwork Orange; from early works such as The Killing, Paths of Glory, Lolita, through Full Metal Jacket to his last enigmatic film, Eyes Wide Shut.

Also a January in theatre: Dr. Strangelove in London at the Coward Theatre. On display are works dedicated to Dr. Strangelove and in parallel it is possible to applaud the theatrical adaptation, always current, with an exceptional Steve Coogan in the role of Peter Sellers.

Kubrick and beyond: cinematic tributes and inspirations

The exhibition also includes works dedicated to directors and works that inspired him or were influenced by him. Among these Nolan, Tarantino, Fincher, Scorsese and Wes Anderson, reinterpreted in the alternative movie posters by the artists. Among these, the alternative poster of The Seven Samurai by Casey Callender stands out, a tribute to Akira Kurosawa, a fundamental author for Kubrick. It will be an opportunity to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Japanese masterpiece, restored by the Cineteca di Bologna and released in theaters on January 13, 2025.

Between masks, disguises and dreams: Carnival according to Kubrick

From February 8 to March 9, Soggettiva Gallery will celebrate Carnival 2025 with a section of works dedicated to masks, costumes and disguises. These elements, central to Kubrick’s poetics, reflect the dichotomy between dream and reality, masterfully explored by Eyes Wide Shut. Joe Van Wetering will be the protagonist with his personal “Evolution Of”, composed of ten tables on iconic costumes and accessories from cinema and TV series. From James Bond to Frozen, from Game of Thrones to Kill Bill and Star Trek.

FILMS, ARTISTS, WORKS

Barry Lyndon, a sumptuous and often overlooked masterpiece, celebrates 50 years with two extraordinary works. Veronica Chessa creates a “collector’s” piece: a precious porcelain figurine depicting the Lyndon couple on a pedestal with a rural background, while Nick Charge dedicates a touching work to the melancholic and resigned Lady Lyndon.

The Shining is one of the films that has provided the most creative “shine” to the artists on display. Todd Alcott, with his irreverent poster of the “Shining Bourbon” at the Overlook bar. The cult scene “Here’s Johnny” inspires different graphic interpretations: Jerome Caskts tells it like a page of a graphic novel, while Max Dalton presents it as an illustrated screenplay. NateMoonLife and Doaly, instead, play with the obsessive repetition of the famous “the early bird catches the worm”; while the architecture of Chris McGuire’s frozen labyrinth and Michael Styles’ snowy hotel capture the menacing atmosphere. From snow to Christmas: Veronica Chessa with a snow globe of the disturbing twins, while Adam Juresko reinterprets the purple waterfall of the elevator that invades the famous final group photo.

A Clockwork Orange has left a deep mark on the collective imagination, thanks also to the Korova Milk Bar, an iconic place that combines a futuristic aesthetic with a provocative and disturbing charge. This space is celebrated in the works of Mark Borgions and Stella Ygris. No less central is the Moloko Vellocet – the “milk +” –, a drink as symbolic as it is disturbing. Jorsh Peña, John F. Malta and NateMoonLife reproduce psychedelic and dystopian atmospheres. James Hobson transforms Dude Alex into a musical note on Beethoven’s score, underlining the centrality of music; while Sarah Sumeray makes fun of the “Ludovico Technique” with a vintage advertisement for the disturbing “method”.

2001: A Space Odyssey explores other worlds and new visions, remaining one of the most enigmatic and revolutionary works in the history of cinema. HAL 9000 is the protagonist of many works: Anthony Petrie represents its malfunction, while Fernando Reza imagines an ironic trial entitled People of the Earth vs HAL 9000, in which the artificial intelligence finds itself answering for its actions. Jason Yang celebrates HAL’s heartbreaking farewell to Dave Bowman. The Monolith and the monkeys, fundamental elements of a symbolic narrative, are at the center of the works of Stella Ygris, Nick Runge and Rich Davies.

Kubrick’s other masterpieces are no less. The loot of The Killing is reinterpreted by Michel Stiles, the war of Paths of Glory by Scott Saslow and the glasses of Lolita by Matteo Costa. and of course the bomb of Dr. Strangelove in the works of Adam Juresko and Ale Giorgini. On Eyes Wide Shut, Stephen Andrade’s work celebrates the mystery and sensuality of the film through a graphic interpretation that recalls the cover of a vintage magazine. Masks, a key symbol of the film, are the protagonists of the works of Nick Charge and Le Nevralgie Costanti, which explore the theme of disguise and fiction, central to Kubrick’s poetics. Finally, the works of Utopian Movies imagine a Shining directed by Wes Anderson and a prequel to 2001: A Space Odyssey, thanks to the visionary use of artificial intelligence.