Tim Burton has built his career on a personal aesthetic and vision, which drips from every film he makes--including Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, and Batman. So it makes sense that at the ripe old age of 51, the Museum of Modern Art is giving him a blow-out, blockbuster retrospective, which opens this Sunday and runs through April 26. Here's a sneak peak at the 700+ objects and artworks on view.

[Image via Otto Otto]

The entrance gate of the show.

[Image via Kevin H]

Untitled (Trick or Treat). 1980. What the entrance of the show might have looked like, if Burton had a Hollywood-sized budget?

Untitled (Edward Scissorhands). 1990. Burton is a prolific painter and drawer--his stories and movie ideas often begin as doodles.

Untitled (The Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy and Other Stories). 1982–1984. Burton's biggest insight might just be that cartooning has always taken the edge off of material that would otherwise be too offbeat for the mainstream--allowing him to slip some pretty strange and violent subject matter into films that are nominally for kids.

Untitled (Black Cauldron), from 1983.

Untitled (Picasso Woman). 1980-1990. Burton has often turned to Picasso for inspiration, as in this Cubist homage.

Blue Girl with Wine. c. 1997. A painting that draws a direct line to the sullen cafe denizens of Picasso's Blue Period.

Untitled (Ramone). 1980-1990. Looks a lot like Dr Seuss, in addition to Joey Ramone, right?

Mars Attacks! (1996).

A still from Big Fish (2003).

A still from Corpse Bride (2005).

The Green Man. 1996-1998.

Untitled (Romeo and Juliet). 1981–1984.

One of the many sculptures on display in the show.

[Image via Otto Otto, which has a ton of great images from the private opening]

A miniature of the Pumpkin King, from The Nightmare Before Christmas.

[Via Otto Otto, which has more pics]

Untitled (Trick or Treat). 1980.

The exhibition coincides with a 430-page book, on sale now for $70. It's the first-ever catalog of Burton's art, and contains over 1000 images and several gatefolds. The $300 Deluxe edition includes the lithograph you see in the middle.