Posters are one of the most important means of communication. Since ancient times, they have been used to convey a visual message to the public and play an important social role in political, economic and cultural arenas.
The huge space to work with images and typography gives posters a strong visual appeal. Posters are also a reflection of social, economic, political and cultural events. They were used in antiquity to convey public announcements, instructions, decrees and orders and were put up in public places.
The Hammurabi Code, a 225 cm height diorite stone, on which King Hammurabi of Babylon (2067-2025 BC) declared the laws of his kingdom is a sample of this visual communication in ancient times. Of course now materials have changed. Instead of stone, paper is used. Posters became popular with the invention of lithography (1796), which allowed brilliantly coloured posters to be produced cheaply and easily.
Poster art dominated Paris in the last 30 years of the 19th century. Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Jules Cheret and Pierre Bonnard were among the famous artists of the time. During the Second World War, the poster was once again a fundamental propaganda tool. The United States was at the forefront of poster production, encouraging American citizens to enlist, buy bonds or work in the war industry.
The industrial boom of the early 20th century gave rise to advertising posters for every conceivable product and event.
In 1925 the Poster Advertising Association and the Painted Outdoor Advertising Association joined to create the Outdoor Advertising Association of America (OAAA) combining the interests of posters and bulletins into one association. This action led to the outdoor advertising revolution. The big rectangular advertisements on the tops of buildings with lights and reflectors began to replace the simple printed poster. They were made of weather-resistant material to survive for a long time under rain and sunshine.
Of course, with the evolution of other media such as radio and television, posters have lost their popularity.
In the Middle East, Iran has great poster designers. The political and cultural role of poster art in Iran is strong. Reza Abedini, Majib Abbasi, Morteza Momayez, Mehdi Saeedi and Parisa Tashakori are some of Iran's prominent poster designers.
Calligraphy is an important element of Iranian posters. Modern Iranian posters integrate typography, images and ornamental elements and the result is a strong visual message.
WE RECOMMEND
BOOKS
HISTORY OF THE POSTER
(Phaidon, 2004)
By Josef and Shizuko Muller-Brockmann
www.phaidon.com
MASTERS OF POSTER DESIGN
(Rockport,2006)
By John Foster
www.rockpub.com
POSTER ANNUAL
www.graphis.com
WEBSITE
Rene Wanner's poster Page
One of the first pages on posters on the internet, this site has been running continuously since August 21, 1997, and under its own domain name www.posterpage.ch since August 5, 2000. Rene Wanner is a PhD in experimental physics and a poster collector; he is also jury member in international poster competitions in many countries www.posterpage.ch
