Activity Guide by Kate Kwasneski
Intern, 51²è¹İapp College Museum of Art
Look and Learn
Posters are images that can be considered both art and places to gather information. Posters can communicate about an event, they can advertise for a product or company, and they can even share an idea. Posters can also express political ideas and opinions and help communicate these ideas to a wider audience. Often, posters are temporary. They are not meant to be around forever, and usually do not last much longer than the end of the event they advertise. Posters did not become popular until the late 1800s, because in order to make many of them without spending a lot of money, designers had to use printmaking techniques that became more popular in this time period. In this guide, we will look at some posters that are permanent parts of GCMoA’s collection.
This poster advertises an exhibition of art that was made to protest various wars. It has large areas of flat color, which is common to many posters. Posters often feature both text and images, and here we see an example of text formed into the shape of an image, with the dove in the center. What information can you find in this poster? For example: when was the exhibition? Can you find where it was held?
This poster combines large, flat areas of color with intricate details like the lines surrounding the heart. What do you think this poster is trying to convey? It’s harder to tell because of the lack of text on the poster, but look at the imagery and think about what it could mean.
This poster has its title written across the top, but there is not much other text to provide context. This poster has more elaborate imagery than the others. The floor has a texture, the barking dog has individual teeth. How does this image make you feel?
This poster has no words at all, but it uses blocks of color and the figures of two birds to convey its message. What could that message be? Think about what the dove symbolizes in art, and what it means that the hawk is putting the dove in danger. Often doves are used to symbolize peace. The artist used this poster to express that she thought peace was in danger, most likely because of the Vietnam War. She expressed her political opinions through art, and we now have a record of them wars later. What do you think about this poster?
Create
Come up with your own poster! You can create a poster about an event, a club, or an idea that you value (for example, you could make a poster about saving the environment, or about the next meeting of your environmental club). My poster shares information about the Art Club at the 51²è¹İapp-Newburg Middle School. You can make your poster physically, or you can create a digital poster like I did. I used the program which is free and includes many layouts and images.
Write
Posters usually contain words as part of their information, so think about what information should be written on your poster to convey its message! Or, if you have made a poster with symbols and no words, think about creating a written explanation to go with your poster to help convey the message.