Vintage Posters | The Last Emperor | Gorowski

The Last Emperor (1987) is a biographical drama directed by Bernardo Bertolucci. The film chronicles the life of Puyi, the last Emperor of China, from his ascension to the throne as a child to his eventual imprisonment and political rehabilitation by the Chinese Communist Party. Starring Peter O’Toole as Reginald Johnston, Puyi’s British tutor, the movie explores themes of identity, power, and transformation against the backdrop of China’s turbulent 20th-century history. The film’s lavish production and compelling narrative earned it critical acclaim and multiple Academy Awards. The artist of this colorful and whimsical original, first-run poster is Mieczyslaw Gorowski (1941-2011), who studied at the Krakow Academy of Fine Arts from 1959 to 1966, where he later served as a professor on the Faculty of Industrial Design. He started designing posters in 1966 and created over 400 posters. In addition, he worked in interior design and painting but, as the artist said about himself, “For many years I have been creating posters. This is the main direction of my artistic and design activity”. His art can be found in collections in Europe as well as North America.