Of all the posters of classic black films from the late 1980s through the 1990’s, one could argue that the poster for Spike Lee’s “Do The Right Thing” (created by Art Sims and 11:24 Design) is one of the most iconic from that period of black cinema.

The Smithsonian agrees, as the institution announced this week that the poster has been selected for the permanent collection at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History & Culture.




When hearing the news, Sims said: “I am humbled that my agency, 11:24 Design, is regarded as the preeminent ad agency in America for creating memorable images for the film and TV industry. 1124 Design, Inc. is the only African American owned ad agency to be recognized for our design work in film advertising for the film ‘Do The Right Thing by’ the Smithsonian Institution – National Museum of African American History & Culture on display in the exhibition, ‘Taking The Stage.’”

As the founder and CEO of his own Los Angles based firm, 11:24 Design, Sims and his company are dedicated to promoting urban youth culture as part of a larger mandate that he dubs “urbanization,” which refers to the recognition and melding of disparate cultural and creative histories.

Along with his multicultural team of creatives, Sims has worked with some of Hollywood’s top filmmakers, including Ava DuVernay, George Lucas, Spike Lee, Jon Kilik, Steven Spielberg, and Abel Ferrera.

He created the indelible images seen for print ad campaigns of numerous famous films, including “Red Tails”, “Malcolm X”, “Jungle Fever”, “King of New York”, “Love & Basketball”, “Clockers”, “When the Levees Broke” and others.