Abstract
This article considers poster display as a distinctive activity and defining aspect of British modernism between the First and Second World Wars, looking to the 'Exhibition of British and Foreign Posters' at the Victoria and Albert Museum in 1931, the first in the Museum to expose the poster-image as a medium in its own artistic, technical, historical and popular right. The article examines the event as signifying core characteristics of a 'poster movement' prevailing during the inter-war years. The period saw varied exhibitions promoting commercial and graphic design of various kinds, of which 'British and Foreign Posters' is a particularly rich example. The exhibition attracted commercial, artistic and curatorial forces, substantiating the idea of a movement, and approached commercial art from a perspective that raised new awareness towards graphic material in urban and museum space alike. To clarify the curatorial approach the analysis draws on a theoretical scheme of ecological semiotics, the concept of 'counterability' and contextualizing displays, which I name 'poster milieux': this example demonstrates how contemporary commercial art was showcased in combination with historical material, and how the curating of more than 600 graphic items effectively integrated the fundamental fact that posters are defined by their physical rootedness.
| Translated title of the contribution | På sporet af Plakatbevægelsen: en undersøgelse af britisk modernisme belyst gennem udstillingen British and Foreign Posters, Victoria and Albert Museum, 1931 |
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| Original language | English |
| Journal | Journal of Design History |
| Volume | 28 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| Pages (from-to) | 142-160 |
| ISSN | 0952-4649 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 1 May 2015 |