The 1970s was a golden time for the pornographic film industry, as the period's rising production budgets generated a dramatic improvement in film quality and plot. Classics such as Deep Throat (1972), Behind The Green Door (1972) and Debbie Does Dallas (1978) were among the many box-office hits and two French films, Emmanuelle (1974) and The Story Of O (1975), also helped introduce the pornographic film to the mass market.
Additionally, the film posters of this Golden Age were some of the finest in the industry's history. Released this month, the oversized book, Sexytime: The Post-Porn Rise of the Pornoisseur, is a glorious portrait of taboo-busting 'porn chic'. Curated by author-filmmaker-curator Jacques Boyreau, the 100+ re-mastered posters vary in style – some with amusing imagery and tag lines, some darkly surreal, some sleek and stylish; all hosting kitsch appeal.
SexyTime by Jacques Boyreau is published by Fantagraphics. An accompanying exhibition runs at The Horse Hospital until September 1.
Text by Laura Bradley
