Poster Artists


"The first film poster made in Sweden was for showing of films by Lumière at the big art and crafts exhibition in Stockholm in 1897. It was however an isolated event. Not until the 1910s increasing film import and domestic film production created a need for posters."

"As artistic filmproduction with Mauritz Stiller and Victor Sjöström, reached a peak in Sweden in the years around 1920 the film poster also flourished. Several well known artists were commissioned to make film posters, Egil Schwab, Einar Nerman, Arthur Sjögren, Curt Peters and others. Some specialized in film posters, like Gunnar Håkansson, the very prolific Eric Rohman, and Nils Hårde, who was head of Svensk Filmindustri's (SF) 'department of artistic advertising' 1920-1953.
    The introduction of sound in the film took place in 1930, and coincided with the break through of a new style in architechture and in all fields of design, all promoted by an important exhibition in Stockholm this year.
    It also changed the appearance of the film poster, introducing experiments with typography, abstract, geometrical composition and, above all, photo montage."


Source: Nationalmuseum, Sweden 1983 (excerpts from an english summary).

Below a small sample of swedish movie poster artists:

Adolf Hallman
1893 - 1968
"Studies with Valands målarskola. 1914-16. Lived in Paris 1919-29, in New York from 1946. Newspaper artist and illustrator, also worked with advertising art and did some work that attracted a lot of attention."

Anders Beckman
1907 - 1967
"Studies with Tekniska skolan 1927-30, in Paris 1930-38. Founder of Beckmans reklamskola, and one of the initiators of the swedish movie poster artists' association (SAFFT)."

Anders Gullberg
1927
"Advertising artist, with C.F. Bodin, among others. Made movie posters during the 1950s and 60s. Painter and graphical artist."

Eric Rohman
1891 - 1949
"Studies with Valand målarskola. Actor, ie. with Stiller on the Nya Teatern in Stockholm, also film actor. In Copenhagen 1915-16. Started with movie posters 1916, had from around 1920 his own studio with several employees. Rohman was from the end of the 1910s and to when he died the significantly most productive artist making movie posters, according to himself he had in the beginning of the 1940s produced approximately 7000 movie posters."

Gösta Åberg
1905 - 1981
"Worked with Rohman until the middle of the 1920s. advertising artist, specialized in movie posters."

Martin Gavler
1915
"Studies with Tekniska skolan 1934-39, degree as drawing teacher. Head of the department of graphic design at Konstfackskolan 1956-59. Worked with movie posters mainly 1940-47."

Mauritz (Moje) Åslund
1904 - 1968
"Studies in Münich in the 1930s. Active as scenery decorator, advertising artist, did also work with animated film."

Nils Hårde
1888 - 1962
"Studies with the academy of fine arts in Copenhagen 1908-11. Artist in the newspaper Göteborgs Morgonpost 1915-20, head of Svensk Filmindustri's (SF) 'department of artistic advertising' 1920-1953."

Per Åhlin
1931
"Autodidact. Employed with an advertising agency in Malmö, scenery decorator 1956-66, active as illustrator and artist as well as with animated film."

Ragnar (Ranke) Sandgren
1916
"Autodidact. Head of Svensk Filmindustri's (SF) 'department of artistic advertising' 1953-1981."

Walter Bjorne
1908
"Studies with Slöjdföreningens skola in Gothenburg 1928-31. Sculptor, advertising artist since around 1937. Has made approximately 5000 movie posters."


Source: Nationalmuseum, Sweden 1983 (artist information translated from Swedish by myself).



The below links will move you away from www.movieposters.se :


A small sample of foreign movie poster artists:

Alvin, John
Amsel, Richard
Bass, Saul
Casaro, Renato
Davis, Jack
McGinnis, Robert E.
Peak, Bob
Struzan, Drew
Source: the Internet Movie Poster Awards.