Since the 2008 film Iron Man, the Marvel franchise has been a powerful force in cinema. In less than a decade, the Marvel Cinematic Universe – based on characters that appear in the Marvel comics – has boasted 14 film titles, with two more to be released by July and the 17th film, Thor Ragnarok, (which features Cate Blanchett) coming to cinemas in November. Brisbane’s Gallery of Modern Art is celebrating with a major exhibition – the largest Marvel exhibition ever presented in an art museum worldwide – featuring more than 500 objects such as props, costumes and concept art as well as moving images from the films.

Featuring iconic objects such as Thor’s hammer, Iron Man’s armour and Captain America’s shield, Marvel: Creating the Cinematic Universe will focus on Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Hulk and the Avengers – with Doctor Strange, Ant-Man and the Guardians of the Galaxy also making an appearance – drawing on Marvel’s epic mythology.

^{Rodney Fuentebella, Keyframe for Captain America: Civil War 2016. Image © 2016 Marvel}

For the exhibition’s curator, Amanda Slack-Smith, it is this mythology that has driven the popularity...