Cool Stuff: Jonathan Burton's Hypnotizing 'Vertigo' Prints

There aren't a lot of classic films that get the collectible art treatment unless they hit that sweet nerd niche, usually in the sci-fi and fantasy genres. But as artist Jonathan Burton proves, you can't go wrong with paying tribute to the films of Alfred Hitchcock.

Mad Duck Posters is releasing a few Vertigo prints featuring imagery inspired by both Shakespeare and the opening title designs of the iconic Saul Bass. These prints are bright, vibrant and available for you to purchase today. Check them out below.

Here's the standard (left) and variant versions of Jonathan Burton's Vertigo prints (via OMG Posters):

The standard version has an edition of 225 with a cost of $65 while the variant has an edition of 125 that will cost $85. Each is a 24x36 screenprint that will go on sale today, September 28th, at 12pm ET at the Mad Duck Posters website. Here's what the artist had to say about the print:

"The scene of Madeleine floating in the bay surrounded by flowers directly reflects images of Shakespeare's Ophelia. I used Sir John Everett Millais's painting of Ophelia as my source of inspiration for her floating pose and the water's reflection of Madeleine's face became an interesting way to represent her duality.

The films use of colour is very rich with contrasting reds and greens. Madeleine and Judy are constantly associated with the colour green; her car, clothes, the cemetery, the lighting in the motel and the green water of the bay in which she throws herself. The reason I coloured the water such a strong shade of deep green.

My representation of Scottie is a direct tribute to the iconic original poster of Saul Bass with a graphic disorienting shape around his silhouette. In the two editions of this poster I wanted to try different ways of showing Scottie's panic. The Variant edition uses the more classic 'spiral' which is synonymous with the film while the regular edition has the form of his silhouette zooming out. In this version Scottie appears to be running towards us but the zoom effect gives the illusion that he's falling away. It's a link to the nausea inducing special effect, invented by Hitchcock, of the camera lens zooming in while the camera pulls back. A technique that was used so effectively to represent Scottie's phobia."

I love the use of colors in the print as well as the hypnotic designs around the silhouette in the corner. This is a must-have for any Hitchcock fan out there.