Now 86, Renato Casaro is one of the world’s most influential poster designers, best known for his classical, windswept, airbrushed canvases: heady reminders of the pre-digital era. His style turns matinee idols into Michelangelos, from Stallone to Schwarzenegger, Costner to DiCaprio. His posters are unabashed theatrics, stuffed with sweaty biceps and heaving bosoms, which transport the punter outside the picturehouse to a thrilling third reel.
Born in Treviso, Italy, in 1935, as a boy Casaro would visit his local cinema every day in the hope of taking home posters of films whose runs had ended, so he could try to reproduce them. In his teens, he struck deals with the owners: free tickets in exchange for painting their walls with huge original posters. At 18, he joined Studio Favalli, the design centre of Rome’s film industry, before opening his own art studio three years later.
