Michael Caine at Museum of London

Not witty enough to be hanging next to each other, only two of the portraits of the iconic British actor Michael Caine by (not less iconic) photographer David Bailey are on display at a newly-opened exhibition in the Museum of London.

The exhibition gets away with a very limited content, mostly from the ’60s, when his world-wide popularity increased. But the general view is a tasty visual cocktail, where selected photographs mix with film projections of the Londoner’s career highlights, a rather refreshing feature. There is even a painting by English ‘kitchen sink realist’ artist John Bratby, showing a colourful Caine in his ’70s look and renowned specs. Because if Michael Cane was famous for something, besides his cheekiness and natural talent for the camera, that was his fashion looks.

It only takes one quick look to the exhibit to realise he did everything with style; photographer Terry O’Neill believes that it was his eyes that made ‘people notice him’, while Bailey says it’s the ‘self confidence coming from him’. However, Caine never quite let fame get to his head. Instead, he complained about instant success, stating he’d rather be known as a good character in a movie than as ‘a wonderful actor’ under the audience’s eyes. ‘The ego disappears and then you just see the person’ are his own words hanging on a wall of the show.

Besides the blink-and-you-miss setting, hidden across the cafe on the lower ground floor of the Museum of London, the space limitation may be the biggest downside of the show. The reduced space dedicated to Caine’s career barely fits the (not too large) selection of material shown and could have shone brighter under the museum’s idea of recreating the cinematic aspects of his life on film.

Overall, this free exhibition pulls together the key ingredients for fans to enjoy and for people new to Caine’s work – and possibly from a younger audience – to fall for the London dandy, even if it’s all thanks to the charm of his persona. An appetiser with a sweet taste but one that leaves us craving for a proper on-screen retrospective of the original Cockney rebel.

Michael Caine is open until 14 July at:

Museum of London
150 London Wall
Barbican
EC2Y 5HN

Image courtesy of KL Communications