International Poster Exhibition Opens Sept. 12 at Colorado State University

Note to Editors:Electronic images of posters in the 13th Colorado International Invitational Poster Exhibition and from honor laureate Chaz Maviyane-Davies are available by calling June Greist in the Public Relations Office at (970) 491-6432.

Posters by acclaimed artists from around the globe will be showcased on the Colorado State University campus, home to the only international poster exhibition organized in the United States.

The 13th Colorado International Invitational Poster Exhibition, which opens Sept. 12, features 197 posters by 102 graphic artists from 35 countries. The work displayed in the exhibition offers international perspectives on contemporary political, social and cultural issues.

Leading the parade of posters is honor laureate Chaz Maviyane-Davies, an artist, design consultant and filmmaker who runs a design studio in Harare, Zimbabwe. Maviyane-Davies has exhibited around the world, and his work has been recognized with numerous awards, including winning the bronze medal at the 11th Biennale of Graphic Design Brno, Czechoslovakia; winning the international design competition for the National Library and Documentation Service in Zimbabwe; and winning several gold, silver and bronze awards for best design in television and advertising from AAZ in Zimbabwe. Maviyane-Davies also was named "Visual Artist of the Year 1993" by the National Arts Council of Zimbabwe.

Posters from the artists invited to the international poster show will fill the Clara Hatton and Curfman Galleries on the Colorado State campus through Oct. 24. In addition, posters by the honor laureate, exhibition directors and high-school students from the Poudre School District will hang in the Fort Collins Lincoln Center, 417 W. Magnolia St. Both exhibitions are free and open to the public. The exhibitions will remain open 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. weekdays and 1-4 p.m. Saturdays through Oct. 24.

Opening ceremonies for the exhibition of work by the honor laureate, exhibition directors and high-school students will be from 5-7 p.m. Sept. 11 at the Fort Collins Lincoln Center. The evening will include a presentation by the laureate, student award presentation and reception.

The international poster show officially opens with a reception from 7-9 p.m. Sept. 12 at the Visual Arts Building at Colorado State. During the evening, exhibition winners will be announced and a poster sale will take place in the Hatton and Curfman galleries, located in the Visual Arts Building and Lory Student Center, respectively. A limited number of copies of exhibition posters will be available. Catalogs also will be available for purchase.

The 13th exhibition catalog will include reproductions of the poster images as well as information provided by the artists themselves. Artists will address how the information age has changed poster design, how posters are used in different countries and locales, how posters are restricted or distributed and what types of posters are produced with frequency in different parts of the world.

The poster exhibition was first organized in 1979 by a group of Colorado State art professors and Fort Collins designers, including Phil Risbeck, Shelton Stanfill, Bob Coonts, Miriam Harris and John Sorbie. This year’s exhibition is coordinated by Linny Frickman, art professor and director of the Hatton Gallery. Risbeck, art Instructor Bob Coonts and graphic art Professor John Gravdahl are exhibition co-directors.

Posters in the show have historically mirrored the issues of foremost public concern. For example, in the 10th biennial event in 1997, artists addressed concern over ecology, racism, war in Bosnia and political and religious tensions in the Middle East. In the ninth biennial event in 1995, artists addressed concern over the spread of AIDS and the survival of endangered species. During the seventh biennial event in 1991, a number of works reflected the fall of the Soviet Union and political shifts in Eastern Europe. This year’s exhibition continues the tradition through artists’ exploration of global peace, environmentalism, human rights, social justice and concerns with corporate consumer culture.

The following satellite poster shows will also be part of the international exhibition.

  • The Fort Collins Museum of Contemporary Art will host an exhibition titled "AIDS in Africa: Awareness Posters." The show is open Sept. 2-Oct. 24, with an opening reception from 7-9 p.m. Sept. 26. Museum hours are Tuesday through Friday 10 a.m.-6 p.m. and Saturday noon-5 p.m.
  • The Colorado State University Morgan Library’s First National Bank Gallery will host an exhibition titled "Contemporary Russian Posters: The Art of Vladimir Chaika." The show is open Sept. 8-Dec. 5. Gallery hours are Monday through Thursday 7 a.m.-midnight, Friday 7 a.m.-10 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m.-10 p.m. and Sunday noon-midnight.
  • The Fort Collins Museum will feature posters by artist Sam English. The show is open Aug. 22-Oct. 26, with an opening reception from 5:30-7 p.m. Aug. 29. Museum hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and noon-5 p.m. Sunday.
  • The University of Northern Colorado will host a satellite show in the Oak Room Gallery Sept. 17-Oct. 10. An opening reception will be held from 4-6 p.m. Sept. 17.

In addition, there will be an online satellite show featuring recent work from invited artists whose posters center on current political happenings and social concerns. The online show, titled "Graphic Responses," will be available on the web beginning Sept. 1.

The poster exhibition is presented by Colorado State, Fort Collins Lincoln Center, Poudre

School District, Fort Collins Chamber of Commerce and the Fort Collins Convention and Visitors Bureau. Financial sponsors include Colorado State’s Department of Art, Arts Alive, Colorado Council on the Arts and Fort Fund from the city of Fort Collins.