Even though the French lay claim to poster art (deservedly so). The history of posters as a means of advertising actually developed in the United States. In the 18th century there were political placards, posters advertising slave auctions, traveling circuses and minstrel shows using printed material affixed to walls; for the most part they were little more than letter press or woodblock announcements with fancy borders. They were heavy on fare and and schedule information with art work only incidental.

In France, however, for a variety of reasons, the situation was different, As the industrial age grew, the average person had more time for themselves. They became better educated. They were becoming readers, theater goers, music and art lovers. It seems as though the French developed a keener sense of art and style, ahead of everyone else. Paris became the center for culture and artistic excellence, earning it the nickname of "the capital of the 19th century."

These were changing times. The middle class started to have access to consumer goods. This new consumer oriented economy created a need for a medium to reach the masses of people with product information. The poster filled the bill admirably. To reach the people they had to be loud, colorful, easy to read and easy to disseminate. More importantly they had to be inexpensive as they only lasted for such a short period of time. This was a problem. The wooden and metal plates used in making posters were much to costly.

Fortunately it was an impoverished actor who came up with the idea of making printers plates of limestone so they could be used over and over which made the posters economically feasible for the advertiser. His name is Aloys Senefelder. (1771-1834) The inventor of Lithography.

By the 1830s, lithography was well established as a technique for printing large notices and posters. The largest printers and best craftsmen were found in England and the United States. The circuses became the early customers for billboard-size publicity. It didn't matter if the drawing was crude; they never dreamt of claiming the posters that would be destroyed by the elements in a few days or weeks had any pretension of art. And yet it was a few samples of these primitive show posters that inspired a young printers apprentice to add the missing ingredient-artistic imagination.

The origin of the poster as an art form dates from the 1870's when Jules Cheret pioneered color lithography as an economical means of advertising. His innovations with color and shading produced images that convey their message in a matter of seconds while enchanting us more than one hundred years later with complex and subtle color harmonies. More than any other artist, Cheret gives us a vision of Paris in the 1890's, an outdoor café society leisurely strolling the boulevards on a Sunday afternoon. This represents an idealized fantasy, devoid of poverty, class struggle, and conflict much the same as those, "closed road driving," commercials for the latest S.U.V. ignore the reality of rush hour traffic.

Since the turn of the century, Postermania has enthralled collectors, dealers, and museums. From humble beginnings as letter press announcements to elevation by the best artists of the twentieth century, the poster still remains the most democratic of all art forms. Called, "the journalism of painting," by critic, J.K Huysmans, posters are first seen by the everyday worker in the street who in turn makes the ultimate decision on it's success and failure. In the past five years a new generation have delighted in these classic posters and through the efforts of master lithographers they are once again available and affordable.

Vintage posters are advertising posters from1890-1940. Designed as billboards, they were printed as economically as possible in sizes from 16"x24" to 8ft.x10ft. Although they were collected from their first appearance the limited supply has made them increasingly difficult to find. In a case of a masterpiece like Lautrec's Moulin Rouge, only six copies are known to exist; one of which sold for $250,000, this past fall. The renewed interest in these images comes not from collectors, but from everyone who has large blank walls and has seen the magic these outdoor advertisements bring to contemporary interiors. Designed to make a simple, dramatic statement the vintage poster functions on several different levels as interior decoration. Nostalgia for a bygone era or product from our childhood make vintage posters a chance to recapture memorabilia from a lost time. We can own a piece of history with a Titanic poster or relive fond memories of childhood with a poster like the cover from Palisades Amusement Park. A travel poster can become a full size souvenir from a past trip, while ads for products can be a visual history of every day items used by our grandparents.

Because of this versatility, the right poster can be perfect for any decor, traditional or contemporary, antique to country. Selection can be made by color or size to fill a particular space or by theme such as toys or a circus for a child's room, food or beverage for a kitchen, soaps for a bath, etc.

Classic posters, are examples of great advertising, combining esthetics with direct communication resulting in a message with resonance. In advertising, you can only sell two things, a product that fulfills a need or creates good feelings. These posters are the epitome of feel-good art and that is what gives them their irresistible charm. With few exceptions, almost every person portrayed in these ads are smiling, from a sublime Mona Lisa smile reflecting inner contentment to a jolly and boisterous guffaw. Of course, this was to show the benefits of using a certain product, but one can't help but smile back at these delightful and carefree images. Matisse, said, "a painting should be like a good armchair and provide relaxation and refreshment from the stress of our everyday lives."