Not currently on display at the V&A

Mr Tambourine Man

Poster
1968 (designed)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This poster was designed by Martin Sharp, an Australian artist, underground cartoonist, songwriter and film-maker. In the late 1960s he created psychedelic posters for many of the British and American bands of the time, and for underground magazine Oz. His influences came from the decorative and eroticised designs of Art Nouveau, combined with the melting rainbow colours of LSD visions and pop art inspirations from the post-war media; traces of Disney, horror movie monsters and comic book characters and can often be seen hiding amongst the images.

Mr Tambourine Man is a song written and performed by Bob Dylan and featured on his 1965 album Bringing It All Back Home. It has become famous for its surrealistic imagery, influenced by artists as diverse as French poet Arthur Rimbaud and Italian filmmaker Federico Fellini. Interpretations of the lyrics have included a paean to drugs such as LSD, a call to the singer's muse, a reflection of the audience's demands on the singer, and even religious interpretations.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleMr Tambourine Man (popular title)
Materials and techniques
Screen print
Brief description
Bob Dylan Mister Tambourine Man poster from 1968, designed by Martin Sharp. Michael English collection
Physical description
Poster printed in red, gold and black metallic ink, featuring a background of red metallic circles and a gold face in sunglasses peering out. The words 'Mister Tamborine Man' beneath the face, partly obscured by the circles.
Dimensions
  • Height: 73.5cm
  • Width: 49.5cm
Style
Gallery label
Australian pop artist Martin Sharp created this image for his underground magazine Oz. Dylan’s face is framed by hair made up of concentric circles, synonymous with the kaleidoscopic motifs favoured by psychedelic artists. The text on his glasses plays on the famous Dylan song ‘Blowin’ in the Wind’, alluding to the altered states experienced under the influence of hallucinogenic drugs. (16/08/2016)
Credit line
Given by Michael English
Subject depicted
Summary
This poster was designed by Martin Sharp, an Australian artist, underground cartoonist, songwriter and film-maker. In the late 1960s he created psychedelic posters for many of the British and American bands of the time, and for underground magazine Oz. His influences came from the decorative and eroticised designs of Art Nouveau, combined with the melting rainbow colours of LSD visions and pop art inspirations from the post-war media; traces of Disney, horror movie monsters and comic book characters and can often be seen hiding amongst the images.

Mr Tambourine Man is a song written and performed by Bob Dylan and featured on his 1965 album Bringing It All Back Home. It has become famous for its surrealistic imagery, influenced by artists as diverse as French poet Arthur Rimbaud and Italian filmmaker Federico Fellini. Interpretations of the lyrics have included a paean to drugs such as LSD, a call to the singer's muse, a reflection of the audience's demands on the singer, and even religious interpretations.
Collection
Accession number
S.28-1978

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Record createdFebruary 24, 2010
Record URL
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