The Skirball Cultural Center Presents the Art and Magic of Harry Houdini

"Houdini straddles crate before going into water, July 20, 1914" - Photograph. Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. On view at the Skirball Cultural Center, Los Angeles in "Houdini: Art and Magic" until September 4th.


Los Angeles, CA.- The Skirball Cultural Center is proud to present “Houdini: Art and Magic, on view through September 4th. Magician, escape artist, and showman extraordinaire Harry Houdini (1874–1926) has remained an object of fascination for generations. Combining biographical and historical artifacts with contemporary art inspired by his physical audacity and celebrity, Houdini: Art and Magic explores Houdini as an individual and an enduring cultural phenomenon, documenting the period in American history when the young Jewish immigrant helped shape the cultural landscape and became an acknowledged mass-market star. Featuring more than 150 objects — including film clips, stunning period posters, dramatic theater ephemera, rare photographs, original props (including a straitjacket, milk can, and Metamorphosis Trunk used by Houdini), and the work of select avant-garde artists — the exhibition reveals Houdini’s legacy as an iconic figure, both in his time and in ours, who has inspired artists today to reconsider his role as a daring persona.

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