Collectors who single-handedly define an entire market are rare, and Dwight Cleveland falls into that category. OnThursday and Friday, March 27 and 28, Heritage will offer the cream of the Chicago-based Clevelands collectionin a single-owner auction and proves that his strategy of collecting cinemas greatest movie posters, from Golden-Age Hollywood classics such as Casablancaand King Kong, to the international interpretations of familiar favorites like CabaretandBarbarella, toone-of-a-kind lobby cardsdating back to the early 1900s, has landed him at the top of the collector and philanthropic hierarchy. Clevelands storied collection is distinguished by a key factor: he collects his materials based on the impact of their imagery, artistry and history rather than the more usual practice of building a collection around a certain era, genre or movie star. The best posters in my mind are those that reduce the entire essence of a movie into a single, vivid sheet, said Cleveland. My collection represents 125 years of film history and transcends global differences and even literacy through the deceptively simple universal language of the worlds most refined film art. Clevelands practice of collecting works for their aesthetic power has created the most visually stunning and diverse collection of movie posters and lobby cards ever realized. Connoisseurs worldwide recognize these materials as artworks in and of themselves, separate but significant pieces of cinemas glorious history. Movies dont reach audiences in a vacuum. The sirens that pull in the crowds start with images that offer a tantalizing taste of whats in store. Pieces of the collection, now 50 years in the making, have made their way into the permanent holdings of the Library of Congress, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, major universities in Wyoming, Texas, Illinois, New Hampshire and more, and into museums and institutions across the country. Rob Stone, the professional film archivist now retired and formerly the Library of Congress longtime Moving Image Curator (as well as a curator of UCLAs Film and Television Archive), has worked with Cleveland for years, and stresses the collectors generous philanthropy in the field as well as his gracious custodial role in holding such material. His collection is both deepandwide, stated Stone. Dwight is also a film historian; he knows everything about a poster, who made it, where it comes from and why, and his impact on collecting is twofold: He understands and shares a poster not just as an artwork but in case of history, what it attaches to. Thats rare. Taste-makers of moving-image culture have honored Cleveland with the 2019 Assouline book,Cinema on Paper, dedicated to Clevelands sweeping collection. That same year, his collection was the subject ofa major museum exhibitionat the Norton Museum in West Palm Beach, Fla., that drew a record number of visitors. The swell of appreciation for the art of movie posters exists in tandem with Clevelands presence in the collecting world. The best posters are enduring, legendary visual communications, writes Steven Heller. They are now psycho-cultural signifiers that provoke a range of existential and mnemonic responses, a heavy weight to put on a poster, but if it werent true, why else would we care about them? We care about them because they are a large part of the cinema gestalt. Cleveland also established theFrederica Sagor Maas Fellowship at Columbia University, whichsupports historical research on womenbehindthe camera,in honor of the youngest female storyeditor in Hollywood history. The selection of Clevelands collection offered by Heritage in March represents the best of the best, according to Joe Maddalena, Heritages executive vice president. Its a robust cross-section of Clevelands keenest interests, including his most remarkable domestic and international posters, and era-launching lobby cards that would have never seen the light of day were it not for Clevelands tireless pursuit. Ive circumnavigated the world hunting down rare film art, says Cleveland. My hunt has led me into unusual situations, from tracking down a mysterious collector in Tokyo so secretive hed changed his identity, to showing up with a sledgehammer and a crowbar at the home of a former theater owner that had been slated for renovation, knowing he had insulated his walls with old film posters. When Cleveland describes why the international interpretations of Western movies are so fascinating and often visually arresting, he points out that, in a sense, the further from Hollywood the country or artist was, the less the imagery was decided by committee. The foreign movie rights were often purchased by individuals in various countries, and the bureaucrats of those countries werent knowledgeable or invested in the poster imagery. So the artists, some well-known and some anonymous, had incredible creative license and freedom. I hope Heritages clients and all movie and art lovers experience that same initial lightning bolt I felt when viewing these rare treasures for the first time, summed up Cleveland. For images and information about all the lots, visit www.HA.com.