Poster art over the years has been used to communicate through advertisements and to illustrate important events
The poster been used to make fine art reproductions available to more people at lower prices.
During the nineteen century some important turning points occurred in the creation of the era of the modern poster.
The first was the industrial revolution which led to the need for large scale advertising.
The second was the development of a printing method known as lithography. Color lithography was developed in France by Jules Cheret in 1860.
Color lithography would lead to the creation of the poster industry and to the
golden age of vintage poster art by the 1890's. The lithographic process made it possible to create beautifully colored prints quickly and for a lower price. Until this time the
Color lithography was developed in France by Jules Cheret in 1860 and would lead to the creation of the poster industry and to the golden age of vintage poster art by the 1890's.
The lithographic process made it possible to create beautifully colored prints quickly and for a lower price. Until this time the posters that existed lacked artistic value. Cheret had developed a theatrical style that represented the Rococo Revival. Looking at vintage poster art over the years illustrates the changes and improvements made to the poster.
The poster industry was helped along by the introduction of a law in 1881 requiring offical posting places. People wanting to put up posters had to pay a tax based on the square footage of the posters. Since posters were seen as an effective method of advertising the advertisers of the day worked with artists and printers to create and post posters on the streets of Paris. So much of vintage poster art provides examples of this type of advertising.
The 1890’s have been considered to be the golden age of vintage poster art. All the great artists of Paris helped to create a poster art craze during this time. One of the earliest examples of posters as fine art is Toulouse-Lautrec’s Moulin Rouge (1891) which was at least partially inspired by Japanese woodblock printing.
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau is known as an elegant decorative art style characterized by intricately detailed patterns of curving lines. Art Nouveau was an art movement that opposed the industrial revolution. This style of vintage poster art emphasized organic shapes and smooth, flowing lines.
In 1894 Alphonse Mucha a Czech born artist living in France at the time is credited with creating the first masterpiece in the Art Nouveau design with a poster he completed for the
American actress Sarah Bernhart.
He influenced many of the great changes in the content and design of posters
during this period that one can see in many examples of vintage poster art.
Other great artists whose work has become a prominent part of vintage poster art included: Theophile-Alexandre Steinlen whose posters have become the most famous poster images ever created, Eugene Grasset who was famous for his portrayal of women in his posters, and Jean-Louis Forain a prolific contributor to Parisian homor magazines.
Toulouse-Lautrec’s death in 1901 led to the decline of this poster craze. He had only created 30 posters. Also Cheret decided to move into painting around this time. Art Nouveau was already starting to decline in popularity about the time of World War I, and was ultimately replaced by the Art Deco style.
Art Deco Poster Art
The Art Deco style of vintage poster art had replaced Art Nouveau soon after World War I. Art Deco posters in the early 1900’s came into being as Art Nouveau more flowing lines evolved into more organized geometrical shapes through the influence of the modern art movements of Cubism, Futurism and Constructivism.
Shapes became streamlined and more sleek angular shapes would replace curved letterforms. Geometric formality and simplicity would characterize this new style in vintage poster art of this period.
During the 1920’s and 1930’s with the influence of Modernism three types of Art Deco posters were created: Zigzag moderne marked by geometric patterns, Streamlined moderne featuring futuristic designs and Classical moderne used by New Deal projects and also in indoor murals.
Poster art over the years has been used to communicate through advertisements and to illustrate important events
