Set of Three Shanghai Lady Posters, China

This framed advertising poster for Nanyang Brothers Tobacco dates to the 1920-30s and melds the meticulous detail of traditional Chinese painting with the nuanced color and fine resolution of color lithography. Known as yuefenpai, or calendar posters, these advertisements depicted fashionable women and intriguing scenery alongside annual calendars and product placements. Evolved from traditional nianhua paintings (New Year pictures), these advertising posters were strongly influenced by the Art Deco movement in the west and recall the economic boom of early 20th century Shanghai, an international center of business and trade. In this example, a young woman dressed in fine clothing and jewelry strolls through a traditional courtyard garden, surrounded by stone statues and towering pagodas. In the lower left corner is an open pack of Golden Dragon Cigarettes and below an array of cigarette brands, each a product of Nanyang Brothers Tobacco. The scene is surrounded by trailing vine scrollwork and text suggesting the poster may have been given as a corporate gift...

Influenced by Western advertising, commercial posters featuring beautiful women in modern settings gained popularity in China in the 1920s and 1930s. Posters like this one came to symbolize prosperity and fortune and were often purchased by Chinese consumers to decorate their homes. This 1930s advertisement...

This vintage poster from the 1930s melds the meticulous detail of traditional Chinese painting with the Craft of color lithography. The serene landscape print depicts a young woman d...

Five posters from Chinese cultural revolution era circa 1970s. Four depicts scenes from modern revolutionary opera, two with music scores and lyrics. Two from "the Story of Red Lanten", one from "The Red Female Army" and one from "Sha Family Village". Some with publication date and origin. These are from a New England Collection purchased directly in Beijing in the 80s. They are in a simple black poster frame. These stylized posters served as a wide range of propaganda during the cultural revolution in China. For history and background as well as many similar posters, see" Chinese Posters...