Poster fans of New York, rejoice! Soon it’s going to be a lot easier to convince your friends to join you at your favorite poster museum.
Poster House is dedicated to preserving the impact, culture, and design of posters, as both historical documents and methods of contemporary visual communication. Established in 2019 at 119 West 23rd Street, Poster House uses the medium of the poster to explore the nature of mass communication and persuasion, the intersection of art and commerce, and control of the public domain. Part propaganda, part advertisement, and part art, Poster House is one of the only spaces in New York (and perhaps the world) dedicated exclusively to the preservation and sociological analysis of posters.
In addition to preserving historic and culturally relevant posters, Poster House also features a popular restaurant called the Café Des Affiches (Poster Café, in French). An homage to the Parisian café and the esteemed history of posters, Cafe Des Affiches is operated by Great Performances, a New York based catering, events, and hospitality company. In addition to Poster House, Great Performances has previously partnered with renowned organizations liked the Plaza Hotel, the Brooklyn Academy of Music, and the Brooklyn Museum.
While the café previously operated with a beer, wine, and cider license, after operating successfully at Poster House for three years board president Val Crosswhite is now applying to upgrade the cafe’s license to a full liquor license. If approved, the new license will see the café expanding its maximum capacity to 274, between the ground floor and basement. The café will also be adjusting its operating hours to 10:00 AM – 12:00 AM, seven days a week. The new change will enable guests to enjoy their stay at Poster House well into the night, and will also enable the café to host private events with music and dancing.
If you’re interested in checking out the space, the café is already open and welcome to visitors, even without admission to Poster Hose, though Poster House’s latest exhibit on Soviet film posters of the 1920’s looks particularly intriguing. For future updates as well as information on all of the museum’s upcoming exhibits, you can follow Poster House on Instagram.
