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A Century of Olympic Posters
A national exhibition of Olympic posters will open on Saturday 27th September at the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust’s Coalbrookdale Gallery, adjacent to Coalbrookdale Museum of Iron, near Ironbridge, Shropshire.
The Victoria and Albert Museum touring exhibition, A Century of Olympic Posters is drawn mainly from the London museum’s internationally renowned collection and includes many rare and beautiful examples, most of which are shown together for the first time. It presents a unique perspective on the modern Olympic Games, exploring their inception and evolution through the powerful medium of the poster.
The exhibition runs until Sunday 11th January 2009, and is hosted by the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust in partnership with the Wenlock Olympian Society, which works to promote the endeavours and ideals of Dr William Penny Brookes who was born in Much Wenlock in 1809 and is regarded as the founding father of the modern Olympic Games. The exhibition includes items from the archives of the Wenlock Olympian Society and the local history of the Wenlock Olympian Class who held their first Annual Games in 1850 will be drawn out in an introductory approach to the Gallery.
Posters are an important means of communication for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, building excitement and shaping expectations of the Games to come. As snapshots through time, these works provide a fascinating record of our world – a visual document of sport and art, politics and place, commerce and culture. Their broad popular appeal and ability to relay messages through eye-catching and memorable imagery means that many of them are now prized souvenirs or collectable works of art and design.
At an exciting moment in Olympic history – when we look from the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and on to the 2012 Games in London – this exhibition celebrates the global connections that the Olympic Games have fostered throughout the last century.
Adjacent to the Museum of Iron, the Coalbrookdale Gallery will be open 7 days a week for the duration of the exhibition from 10am to 5pm, entry into the exhibition is free but donations will be welcome.
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