A poster is a wall sheet of a large format propaganda, advertising or educational plan with a picture or photograph, as well as an explanatory text.
Poster story
A poster is a fairly ancient phenomenon. Its types include cave paintings, prints of the Middle Ages, shop signs, theater and movie posters, propaganda and social media, birthday posters, children's, wedding.
At the end of the 18th century, the German I.A. Zenerfelder invented the so-called flat printing - lithography, thereby becoming the founder of a multi-color printed poster. And in 1869, the French graphic artist and artist J. Cheret released the first color theater poster, “Ball of Valentines”, in which he combined lithography and convex printing.
In the form in which we know the poster today, it appeared in the 19th century. Poster art began to spread with the revival of theaters, art galleries, with the development of active political life and the holding of rallies. At that time, posters were still mostly made by hand. Such artists as A. Toulouse-Lautrec, J. Shere, E. Grasse, AM made a great contribution to the art of the poster. Fly, P. Bonnard, E. Degas, C. Manet, A. Matisse, P. Picasso.
Types of Posters
Posters can be classified according to various criteria. For example, depending on the application technique, they are divided into offset or digital printing posters. In size, they are also different. The minimum format is usually A2.
Based on what means were chosen as the presentation of information, posters can contain only a picture, only text or text and a picture together.
If the poster contains only an image, then it should be very high resolution. It is necessary that the picture or photograph on the poster is well recognized so that the viewer can quickly understand what is shown.
Such requirements are imposed on textual ones as for picture posters - what is written should be understandable. Often these posters are used in conjunction with graphics. An example of this type of poster is a science-related poster.
And finally, the most popular and widely used type of posters is “picture + text”. They are the most effective, easier to interpret. The image is of interest to viewers, and the text provides them with additional information.
Depending on the subject and function, they can be classified as advertising, pre-election, campaign, for theater and cinema, social, children's posters, birthday, educational information posters and so on.
Theater and movie posters
The theater poster as a form was recognized in 1897 after an exhibition in St. Petersburg. It was attended by many famous artists of the time, who brought their best works.
The main goal of a theater poster or poster is to announce new productions, to convey to the viewer information about the place, time, date of the cost of attending an event.
With the development of cinema, posters began to be used for advertising films. Initially, the movie posters portrayed various episodes of the film. Later, to attract the viewer, the creators began to illustrate the main characters, and even tried to convey the genre and mood of the film.
On theatrical and movie posters, in most cases, the main actors, illustrations or frames are depicted anticipating the action of a play or film. In addition to artists, the names of authors, directors, producers, producers can be mentioned.
Since such a poster should sag for a sufficient amount of time (at least one season), it should be printed on very good paper, and also have ideal color quality.
Propaganda posters
During the First and Second World Wars, the poster received a new role - it became an instrument of political propaganda. Posters were often used to give a sense of patriotism to ordinary citizens. All the warring parties massively used posters that helped to recruit soldiers in the army, to raise money for the production of weapons for the front. On posters, the enemy has always been shown from the worst side. Wartime posters served as powerful weapons of motivation and agitation, affecting the population.
After the war, the propaganda poster began to be used as a campaign tool to advance the goals of various parties and candidates. On such posters, individual politicians are usually shown close-up or inside an important target group, for example, among children. With the help of posters of this kind, parties or politicians want to convince voters that they have the right answer to social questions, and tell what benefits can be expected when choosing the appropriate party. Pre-election posters are placed immediately before the event for the general public.
Soviet posters
Creating the image of the enemy of the motherland has become a kind of calling card of Soviet communist propaganda. Almost anyone could be an enemy. For example, one of the favorite characters of the time was a speculator. He was usually dressed in a long coat and an American hat. Also in the form of a dangerous enemy portrayed alcohol. Drunkenness, which was widespread, was usually interpreted as a serious crime.
Soviet fine art not only exposed the enemies of power and truants. Posters motivating people to work hard were popular.
Current foreign policy was also a common theme for Soviet posters. An image of the enemy from outside was created. The favorite in Soviet propaganda was NATO. It was presented on posters as a puppet of the United States.
Starting from the 1920-1930s, posters with safety rules in industry, construction and on the roads were distributed.
Holiday posters
In the modern world, posters have a little lost their propaganda function. Today posters are mass produced. And anyone can order a poster for a particular holiday and event, for example, for a birthday or for a wedding.
This is a very popular way of artistic interior decoration. Posters adorn children's rooms, living rooms, offices and other rooms.
Advertising posters
Posters are one of the most popular forms of visual advertising. This is a quick, effective and cheap way to attract potential customers. Posters are placed at points of sale in order to tell potential buyers about the latest products and benefits.
The design of advertising posters should be carefully thought out. The essence of the advertising poster is to convey your message to people, often in a hurry passing by. Of great importance is color. Advertising that uses a contrasting palette is clearly visible and stands out. An important role is played by fonts. Too small and thin letters should be avoided, and capitalization should be minimized. Words should be separated by visible spaces.
The service life of posters can be quite long. Therefore, in the manufacture of very high quality materials and paints are used, lamination is used.
Currently, an advertising poster is no longer just an informational message on paper. Thanks to technology, the poster has unlimited possibilities. For example, it can be three-dimensional or glow at night.
Create and print posters
Creating posters is now very different from the process that was a hundred years ago. Both printing methods and message delivery methods have changed. Before getting on public display, the poster goes through several stages.
- Strategy Development. This is a particularly important stage for advertising posters. That is, the idea itself is invented, a highlight, how to make the poster attractive, but at the same time understandable to the target audience.
- Poster design - development of the visual part. At this stage, the color scheme is determined, fonts, poster size are selected.
- Print a poster. It is carried out in various ways - it can be offset or digital. Also, the finished poster can be laminated, varnished. The final appearance of the product depends on the purpose and purpose of the poster.
In the modern world, with the advent of new media such as television and the Internet, the poster is losing its original significance. He ceased to be a form of art or a means of agitation. Despite this, the poster still remains in demand as outdoor advertising.