Pop Sherlock: A Free Exhibit Celebrating the Cultural Influence of the Great Detective Opens August 19

Our new exhibit, Pop Sherlock, opens this Saturday, August 19 in the TD Gallery at the Toronto Reference Library. As always, admission is free and the gallery is open to the public during regular library hours. It runs until October 22, 2017.

A deerstalker hat, a pipe and a magnifying glass – there are few literary characters as instantly and universally recognizable as Sherlock Holmes.

Photograph of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Emil Otto Hoppe, 1912

Holmes first appeared in in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s 1887 novella A Study in Scarlet. Conan Doyle went on to write 59 more stories about Holmes, but the legend of the Great Detective continued to grow as many other writers took a turn at developing the character.

Programme for Sherlock Holmes, London: Duke of York's Theatre, 1905, featuring a young Charlie Chaplin in the role of Billy.

One hundred and thirty years after his first appearance in print, Holmes could be considered the first and most enduring pop culture icon. Constantly reinvented and endlessly adaptable, we’ve seen Holmes travel from print to stage, to big and small screen, to advertising, to graphic arts and everywhere in between.

Advertisement for Labatt 50, produced by J. Walter Thompson Co., © Labatt's Ontario Brewery, 1971

Pop Sherlock looks at the influence the Great Detective has had on popular culture and the other characters, stars and icons he has met along the way.

A Study in Pink, adaptation by Jay, © Titan Comics and Hartswood Films, 2016

The exhibit features an eclectic array of items from the library’s Arthur Conan Doyle Collection, including theatre programmes, manuscripts, comic books, toys, animation cels, movie scripts and press books and more. It’s a fan’s paradise, but also a great overview of Holmes’ cultural influence for those recently introduced to the character.

Selection of Sherlock Holmes toys and collectibles

After your visit to the exhibit, be sure to stop by the permanent home of the full Arthur Conan Doyle Collection in the Marilyn & Charles Baillie Special Collections Centre on the fifth floor of the Toronto Reference Library. The collection got its start in 1969 with the purchase of a few boxes of antiquarian books and opened to the public in 1971. It is one of the world’s largest collections of materials devoted to Sherlock Holmes and his creator.

Inspired to write your own detective story?

Sherlock Holmes continues to inspire new generations of writers, illustrators and filmmakers. Do you have an idea for a new take on the Great Detective?

Join Angela Misri, author of the Portia Adams mystery series, in the Toronto Reference Library’s Beeton Hall on Thursday, August 24 at 6 pm, as she takes you through the process of writing your own mystery novel. No registration is required.