Modern Poster Art - From Advertising to Propaganda

Although art and artists are often treated as outcasts by people associated with commerce, trade, and science in the contemporary world, there is a close connection between art and every other field imaginable. The only reason behind it is the fact that art appeals to people in ways that other fields fail to comprehend. Historically, the arts - music, painting, and performance- have been impactful in creating a collective consciousness regarding a product, a person, or an ideology. Modern poster art is probably the best example of such a phenomenon. 

As a medium of advertisement, posters can be traced back to as early as the 15th century. In 1477, William Caxton, the man who introduced the printing press in Britain, published a block text poster in Salisbury, for a handbook for priests. At the time, such posters were text-based and vastly different from modern posters in terms of creative exhibition and aesthetic appeal. With time, the poster changed significantly and evolved into one of the most important art forms of the modern world. However, most of these changes started taking place from the mid-nineteenth century with the advent of the advanced lithographic process. 

The emergence of poster art in Advertisement - shift from the nineteenth to the twentieth century.

The Modern poster we know of today has its origin in the mid-19th century. Born in 1936, Jules Chéret is regarded as the father of modern poster art. He was a master lithographer, the one who introduced the 3 stone lithographic process in 1880. Chéret is well-renowned for the posters he made for music theatres and perfume companies. The poster he made for the Moulin Rouge is an iconic example of his signature style. 

Chéret’s use of bright colours and bold typography is a characteristic phenomenon of posters of the time. At the beginning of his career, Chéret spent some time in London as well. Therefore we can also find influences of British art and styles in his posters. Gradually Chéret became the most sought-after artist in Paris. Circus Troupes, Train companies, actresses, soaps, beverage companies, lined up to get their advertisements done by him. 

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec was another artist of the late-19th century, whose works remarkably captured the shift of the century in the single most glamorous city of the world, Paris. The post-impressionist painter was inspired by the nightlife of the city and created a total of 363 posters during his lifetime. He also worked with several famous and important cabarets and theatres. Performers played a crucial and central role in his works. Jane Avril was Toulouse’s muse and a performer at the Moulin Rouge. She appears in several of his posters such as Jardin de Paris (1893), La Troupe de Mlle Eglantine (1895), and the most famous Jane Avril (1893). 

Alphonse Mucha, a Czech painter was another important artist, a pioneer of the Art Nouveau style of the 1890s. Born in a small town in the Czech he was a self-taught artist. He learnt stage decoration in Vienna and during his stay in Munich, he took painting classes. Once he moved to Paris, he started working small commissions for newspapers and books. However, his career course completely changed when he made a poster for actor Sarah Bernhardt in 1894. It impressed her so much that she signed Mucha for the next six years. Along with posters, he also designed her theatre decorations as well as costumes. Soon, he was overwhelmed with projects and commissions from big brands and businesses. Alphonse Mucha’s artworks were influenced by all the stages of his artistic experiences. A distinct characteristic was that the women of Mucha’s paintings and posters have a strong resemblance to fairies with decorative floral designs around them. Mucha used warm colours unlike his contemporaries and the posters were heavily influenced by the elements of the art nouveau.

War, Revolution, and the birth of the Propaganda Poster.

The beginning of the twentieth century saw turbulent times all over the world. The First World War which started in 1914 and continued till 1918 was one of the most devastating occurrences. It was during this time that posters became prevalent forms for spreading propaganda. These posters were patriotic which directly reached out to the public with the message that the country needs them. They had the elements of urgency and pride accompanied with some stern messages for the countrymen. 

One of the most famous posters of the First World War, this one has Field Marshal Lord Kitchener, calling out to the British men to join the army and save the country.

In this one, the feeling of unity is propagated. It shows British men from all walks of life, farmers, lawyers, bureaucrats, artists all gradually joining and blending in with the army.

This 1915 poster used in Ireland was aimed at the Protestant population rooting for unification during a time when Ireland was fighting for its independence. In the poster, we can see Welsh, English, and Scottish army men ready for war while an Irish soldier stands at the back.

Another classic World War 1 poster, this one shows Uncle Sam addressing the American population to join the army. This one was inspired by the British poster with Lord Kitchener. War bonds were thoroughly propagated during the war, which was crucial in financing the war efforts. In this one we see the Statue of Liberty ordering the Americans to buy liberty bonds to sustain the army and its functioning.

In this one, the idea is to appeal to the corporates, the businessmen and industrialists of America to enlist with the army. It urges the rich and the privileged to contribute to the national effort. 

Another important event during that time was the Bolshevik Revolution of Russia. Headed by Vladimir Lenin, the 1917 revolution was the single most important revolution of the 20th century. The turbulent politics which ultimately led to it had its origin was back in 1905, the outbreak of the Russian Revolution. Posters, again, played an important role in the mobilization of the proletariat to join the fight against the Tsarist rule which ended in 1920 and the USSR was established in 1922. 

This poster printed by Parus, a leftist publishing house founded by Maxim Gorky, was created by the famous collaboration of Vladimir Mayakovsky and Alexei Radakov. In this one, we can see the social pyramid with the Tzar at the top level. Interestingly, his red robe is flowing through the structure which indicates how the society was completely under a grasp with the proletariat at the lowest level.

Another one from the same publishing house, this one depicts “the changing wind”. It shows how the soldiers earlier protected the wealthy and the privileged demonstrated in the first half. And on the other half, we see the soldiers defending the proletariat, who have sickles and hammers, symbolic of the revolution.

This one is the poster that the Socialist Revolutionary Party used during the Constituent Assembly Elections of 1917. In this poster, we see a simple message. In the background, we can see the factories, indicating that the masses are working class. On the other hand, we see a broken shackle in the foreground, which refers to the common understanding that the workers had nothing to lose but their chains.  

American Posters of the 1950s - The Madison Avenue Men.

After the end of the Second World War, around the 1950s, there was a massive “boom” in the poster industry. The dominant peaceful conditions which prevailed during that time had resulted in an outburst of population. This gave rise to widespread consumerism and saw the evolution of global brands which continuously looked for ways to market and advertise their products to the population. 

Two distinct styles of poster emerged during this time - the corporate and the consumer. 

The consumer form was characterized by bright colors and playful imagery. Stan Galli and Paul Rand were the two of many Madison Avenue men who were somewhat the pioneers of the time. International brands, airlines, tourism, tobacco, television sets and everything modern was put on posters and sold to the consumers of the American nation. 

Born in San Francisco, Stan Galli was famous for his posters for United American Airlines. In a series of beautiful and colorful posters, he was able to present the American states as attractive tourist locations which resulted in the escalation of both tourism and flight travel across the United States. 

Paul Rand, born in 1914, was one of the most famous art directors of 1950s New York. His works were precise and engaging. He is famous for his logo designs for big corporate firms. In a way, he changed the way America saw Graphic design. He combined bold colors and typographic elements to make striking imagery that appealed to and caught the attention of the people. His works were inspired by the German school Bauhaus and Russian Constructivism. He believed that geometry and simplicity were important elements in any field of visual art.

Posters have been influential throughout the last century and an important form of Modern Art. This also shows how art can impact politics, commerce and daily life. While we talk about how advertising has been the central principle factor in the extension of consumerism, we miss out on the role of the creative aspect, posters, which had a huge role to play in the same. The situation is similar in the case of political propaganda in terms of the world wars and the revolutionary movements which changed the course of the twentieth century itself.