A host of designers have reimagined alternative posters for iconic films such as The Wicker Man and King Kong which are on display at East Finchley’s Phoenix Cinema until the end of the month.

The work is exhibited by Dark City Gallery, which specialises in limited edition artwork for music, theatre and cinema.

Gallery founder Ross Beaty believes that, instead of being an essential hook on the side of a bus to make you see the film, the modern cinema poster had become a dull mash-up of action shots, distinctly lacking in the kind of bold design concept, beautiful detail and emotional pull that should make you stop for a second and be moved.

“About 10 years ago, film posters were very uninspiring, put together with lots of photographs with little creative appeal,” he says.

But ever since the release of Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan and the creation of four art deco-style posters by La Boca to accompany the film, the standard of cinema artwork has improved.

“These posters worked perfectly as bold theatrical advertising and in recent years I have noticed more interesting cinema posters materialising, especially for small independent films.”

The poster on display at the Phoenix of 1978 classic The Deer Hunter was created with La Boca for the film’s recent rerelease, but other posters are by designers such as Rich Kelly, Dan Mumford and Adam Simpson and include this stunning art deco-inspired image for King Kong.