It's Alive at the Peabody Essex Museum

If Halloween in Salem wasn't enough for you, the It's Alive exhibit at the Peabody Essex Museum may just do the trick! This limited-time feature wraps up on November 26th so be sure to get to the PEM before time runs out.

The roots of the Peabody Essex Museum date to the 1799 founding of the East India Marine Society, an organization of Salem captains and supercargoes who had sailed beyond either the Cape of Good Hope or Cape Horn. The society’s charter included a provision for the establishment of a “cabinet of natural and artificial curiosities,” which is what we today would call a museum. Society members brought to Salem a diverse collection of objects from the northwest coast of America, Asia, Africa, Oceania, India and elsewhere. By 1825, the society moved into its own building, East India Marine Hall, which today contains the original display cases and some of the very first objects collected.

In the late 1860s, the Essex Institute refined its mission to the collection and presentation of regional art, history and architecture. In doing so, it transferred its natural history and archaeology collections to the East India Marine Society’s descendant organization, the Peabody Academy of Science (the “Peabody”). In turn, the Peabody, renamed for its great benefactor, the philanthropist George Peabody, transferred its historical collections to the Essex.

In the early 20th century, the Peabody Academy of Science changed its name to the Peabody Museum of Salem and continued to focus on collecting international art and culture. Capitalizing on growing interest in early American architecture and historic preservation, the Essex Institute acquired many important historic houses and was at the forefront of historical interpretation.

With their physical proximity, closely connected boards and overlapping collections, the possibility of consolidating the Essex and the Peabody had been discussed over the years. After in-depth studies showed the benefits of such a merger, the consolidation of these two organizations into the new PEM was effected in July 1992. Bringing us to present-day and the Peabody Essex Museum's latest exhibit, It's Alive! Classic Horror and Sci-Fi Art from the Kirk Hammett Collection.

Kirk Hammett, best known as the guitarist of the rock band Metallica, is also an avid collector of classic horror and sci-fi movie posters. This exhibition explores the interplay of creativity, emotion and popular culture through 135 works from 20th-century cinema, including posters by an international array of graphic designers, rare works by unidentified masters as well as related memorabilia such as electric guitars, lobby cards, film props and costumes. Hammett has dedicated the last three decades to creating one of the world’s most important collections and acknowledges his poster collection as a source of inspiration for his own musical creativity.

Come check out this extensive exhibit and devour the details of the PEM has to offer! See you there!