John "Jack" W. Ryan, Ruth Handler, Charlotte Johnson, Mattel, Inc., Barbie Teen-Age Fashion Model (Barbie #1), 1959, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, gift of Mattel, Inc., BARBIE® doll © Mattel, Inc. Used with permission., photo © Museum Associates/LACMA

Pieces of Hollywood History

March 13, 2026
Alexander Schneider, Associate Editor

With awards season in full swing, we’re taking a look at our collection for art and objects that demonstrate the film industry's influence across artistic disciplines. From film posters to fashion to photography, these are just a few pieces that trace how Hollywood has been styled, staged, and reimagined for nearly a century.

Movie lovers can also visit LACMA to see SUEÑO PERRO: A Film Installation by Alejandro G. Iñárritu, a multisensory installation rooted at the intersection of cinema and visual art that marks the 25th anniversary of Iñárritu’s legendary debut feature Amores Perros (2000), as well as Deep Time Cinematography, Jonathon Keats’s site-specific conceptual artwork that embodies the artist’s idiosyncratic engagement with image-capture technology.

Colorful movie posters
Installation photograph, The Art of the Movie Poster: Highlights from the Mike Kaplan Collection, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, February 24–April 29, 2018, photo © Museum Associates/LACMA

Gold woman's swimsuit
Margit Fellegi for Cole of California, Woman's swimsuit, 1950–51, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, gift of Esther Ginsberg and Linda Davis in honor of Jennifer Blake, © Margit Fellegi Estate. Reproduced with permission of The Warnaco Group, Inc. All rights reserved. For Authentic Fitness Corp., Cole of California, photo © Museum Associates/LACMA

Black and white wall design
Anthony Friedkin, Gable, Lombard, and Hitchcock, Universal Studios, 1978, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Gift of Sue and Albert Dorskind, © Anthony Friedkin, digital image © Museum Associates/LACMA

Audrey Hepburn
Mel Traxel, My Fair Lady (film still from 'My Fair Lady'), 1963, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, gift of Joyce Essex Mieszala and Yves Mieszala, photo © Museum Associates/LACMA

Charlie Chaplin
James Abbe, Charlie Chaplin in 'The Pilgrim', 1923, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, gift of the Sid and Diana Avery Trust, © Estate of James Abbe, photo © Museum Associates/LACMA

Ernst Lubitsch
Erich Salomon, Ernst Lubitsch, Hollywood, 1930, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, gift of Nancy Nigrosh, photo © Museum Associates/LACMA

Woman smoking
David Lynch, Face with Smoke #1, 1992, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, purchased with funds provided by the Ralph M. Parsons Fund, ©The David Lynch Estate, photo © Museum Associates/LACMA

Johnny Weissmuller
George Hurrell, Johnny Weissmuller, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, gift of the Hollywood Photographers Archive, photo © Museum Associates/LACMA

Sketch of Marilyn Monroe
Orry-Kelly, Costume Sketch of Marilyn Monroe as Sugar Kane in the United Artists Production, 'Some Like it Hot', 1959, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, gift of Charles LeMaire, photo © Museum Associates/LACMA

Hollywood sign at sunset
Ed Ruscha, Hollywood, 1968, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Museum Acquisition Fund, © Ed Ruscha, photo © Museum Associates/LACMA

Extravagant costume dress
Gilbert Adrian, Adrian, Costume for Norma Shearer in the MGM Production of 'Marie Antoinette', 1934, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, gift of Bob Carlton, photo © Museum Associates/LACMA

Vintage photo of red car
William Eggleston, Untitled [Red car, Paramount lot], 2001, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, gift of Caldecot Chubb, © Eggleston Artistic Trust, digital image © Museum Associates/LACMA