Poster To Poster
Project Background
Art has played an increasing part in railway development since the first fledgling locomotives of the early 19th century appeared. Railway posters themselves first appeared well over 100 years ago, and their images have bombarded travellers all over Great Britain (and indeed the rest of the world) ever since. Some of these have become classic works of art, and desirable in many countries, with collectors from all walks of life.
There are no definitive books about railway posters from the early day right up to the present day. There are poster books that cover the so-called ‘Golden Age’ from 1923-1947 and some excellent books about London Transport and Underground advertising, but the subject of railway posters of the 20th century has been sadly neglected. This first volume in a series of eight, aims to redress this deficiency. We are very fortunate in the United Kingdom to have had a plethora of great poster artists. When trains became affordable and there was a need to travel to get away from the ‘hum-drum’ of city life, the many railway companies began to develop the poster as the medium of communicating destinations of interest as well as to relax.
We are very fortunate that the National Railway Museum at York has in its archives a unique and quite wonderful collection of posters, paintings and carriage prints, so we can show the grandeur that is Scotland through a selection of these pieces of art. Many have never been published in this way, so this is also an insight into the heritage that the NRM at York has saved for generations to come. The Author was granted open access to this fabulous collection, with a view to publishing many unseen images of bygone times.
This volume is the result of seven years work and is a mixture of documentary reference, geographic study, historical view and artists review using the central theme of posters. Within this book readers can view wonderful Scottish images issued by the Pre-grouping companies, through the era of the ‘Big Four’, then through British Railways times and into Intercity, Scotrail and Virgin posters.
Scotland was chosen as the starting point for a series of railway journeys because its rich history, landscape and culture have all formed the basis for superb works of art. The result is a serious and modern treatment of the subject, culminating in an essay on the marketing of Scotland and the role posters played in the country’s development.
In recent times, collecting railway posters has become far more popular, both within the art world and in railway memorabilia collecting circles. This is part due to nostalgia and partly because many of the early posters are now extremely valuable. However the more modern posters are also affordable and memorable to all of us who regularly take the train. Having lists of what was published and what therefore is available is long overdue, so collectors can see how many Lancashire, or Edinburgh or Norfolk posters were published. This series of books is being published in conjunction with The National Railway Museum in York and the Science and Society Picture Library in London. Further support has been provided by Onslows, the International Auction house specializing in posters of all subjects. The series will showcase some of the greatest collections of railway posters to be found anywhere in the world. Of the several thousand railway posters published since the Victorian era, less than 10% have featured in poster books.
The Series Of Books
The series of poster books will now number eight in total. They will appear at regular intervals over the next three years. Eight volumes, each of 220 - 250 pages, and featuring between 300-380 posters per volume, allows many previously unpublished posters from Victorian to Modern Times to be seen as intended – an inducement to travel. Each volume has a regional focus (the first time this has been attempted) and the locations will be based on the older British county names rather than the modern administrative areas. This is in keeping with more than 80% of the classic images used. The books are largely colour-coded (where possible) to match the regional colours used by British Railways after 1948, will cover the following areas and counties:
Vol.1: SCOTLAND
All the counties of Scotland but using the former names when posters were popular (e.g. Roxburgh, Selkirk, Peebles, Banff etc.)
Published July 2009
Vol. 2: YORKSHIRE AND THE NORTH EAST
Northumberland, Durham and Yorkshire
Published May 2010
Vol. 3: MIDLANDS AND WALES
Staffordshire, Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Warwickshire, Shropshire, Worcestershire, Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, Monmouthshire, plus Mid- and South Wales except those in Vol. 5.
Published January 2011
Vol. 4: EASTERN COUNTIES OF ENGLAND
Lincolnshire, Cambridgeshire, Rutland, Huntingdonshire, Hertfordshire, Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex
Scheduled for summer 2011
VOL. 5: LONDON AND THE SOUTH EAST
London, Middlesex, Berkshire, Surrey, Kent, Sussex, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.
Scheduled for early 2012
Vol. 6: THE BRITISH NORTH WEST
Cumberland, Westmorland, Lancashire, Cheshire, Flintshire, Denbighshire, Caernarvonshire, Anglesey, Northern Ireland and the Isle of Man
Scheduled for October 2012
Vol. 7: THE GLORIOUS SOUTH-WEST
Somerset, Wiltshire, Dorset, Devon, Cornwall, Scilly Isles and the Channel Islands
Scheduled for early 2013
Vol. 8: ADVERTISING AND FOREIGN
General poster advertising, Informative posters, Southern Ireland, Belgium, Holland, France, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and other locations advertised by British Railway Companies; the impact of Railway Hotels, Camping Coaches, Railway ships and Railway Air services, all of which featured on posters, will be included.
Scheduled Christmas 2013
Aims of the series
The books will showcase the posters as if the readers are taking railway journeys. Not only will the posters be covered in more depth than before, but the history, geography and commercial aspects of each place visited will allow the book to be an educational travelogue, as well as a poster guide. The central core of each book is the posters, carriage prints and original paintings contained therein. Unpublished materials and subjects will be used where possible. Also featured at the rear of each book will be a large regional poster database being jointly developed by Valerie Kilvington, Simon Kilvington and the Author, which has already taken many man-years of work so far. Though not yet completed, the aim is to eventually develop it into a definitive listing of as many of the posters as possible which were produced by the numerous British railway companies.
The books will assist in archiving and cataloguing by helping to remove small errors and anomalies in other research material. Careful reviewing of the National Collection at York and material from other sources has allowed a more correct poster listing to be produced. The books will therefore be of real use and interest to the professional collectors and the enthusiasts alike.