The History of Travel Posters June 15 2016, 0 Comments

 “Posters reflect our culture and are like visual graphic icons of the times in which they were created.”  ~ Robin Shepherd, travel poster collector.

Throughout history travel poster have been used for a myriad of reasons. They not only advertised travel destinations, but were used by hotels, airlines, railroads and tourism companies to graphically represent themselves to the public. Many of them were considered works of art.

At the time the lithographic printing process was developed (which was ideally suited to producing posters) travel posters made their mark.  They combined large images with bold text inspired travelers to explore the world. They were prominently displayed on kiosks and in the train stations of Europe and America.

At first these travel posters were a jumble of images and text and crowded with information, but by the early 1900's, artist had simplified the travel poster by using fewer details added power to the message. By the 1920s, other artists transformed the travel poster from illustration to symbol. Which is what modern-day posters and pictographs are based off of. But, posters continue to evolve with new methods and ideas and will always be a major part of our world.

Travel posters are one of the most popular areas of poster collecting today. More than any other poster category, they awaken our dreams of adventure, beauty and wanderlust. Grab your favorite poster from our page and discover a new love for your favorite town! 

Sources: 

http://greenolivearts.com/history-travel-posters/

http://st.hzcdn.com/simgs/30014b5804c12555_4-0649/midcentury-prints-and-posters.jpg