Although Clint Eastwood had made Dirty Harry by the time High Plains Drifter came along in 1973, he was most definitely known to the general public as a Hollywood cowboy. He redefined the genre with Sergio Leone in 1964 with A Fistful of Dollars and has always tried to reinvent the western each time ever since. High Plains Drifter was the first western that Eastwood directed and it is one of his finest. It is the story of a ghost-like character seeking revenge in the isolated prairie town of Lago, a theme he revisited in Pale Rider (1985)

The town of Lago was built on the shores of Mono Lake in California for the filming which, in typical Eastwood style lasted only six weeks. He has a long standing reputation for bringing his productions in on time and under budget. The whole town was ultimately painted red and renamed “Hell” for the movie’s most memorable final scenes as the townsfolk finally begin to understand it is their own fault that the stranger is wreaking havoc.

Original poster artwork is rarely found in the market place. It tends to find homes within the senior staff of a production and there are countless examples of directors, actors and producers keeping the paintings that go to make their movie’s posters. This stunning painting was given to Clint Eastwood personally on completion of High Plains Drifter and it hung in the Malpaso Production offices for many years before being gifted to a member of his staff on her retirement. It measures approximately 16 x 24 inches and is executed in acrylics.