Date: 1988
Size: 26.25 x 37.5 inches
About The Poster: Polish posters have come to stand apart from the advertising design conventions fostered in Europe during the 20th century. It was during the communist regime, a time when culture was closely monitored by the state, that Polish artists found liberation in poster art. Ironically, this foremost public artform became ground for individual expression. During that period, the cultural institutions, of theatre and cinema especially, flourished as government agencies funded them. Artists freshly out of the fine arts academy flocked towards poster production as the demand for this art was rapidly growing. The result became some of the unique and expressive posters the world has ever seen - and artworks in themselves.
This poster was created by Jan Mlodozeniec for the Polish version of the American Western Young Guns. The 1988 American Western was directed by Christopher Cain and written by John Fusco. The film stars some of the hottest 1980s Hollywood actors: Keifer Sutherland, Lou Diamond Phillips, Dermot Mulroney, Emilio Esteves, and Casey Siemaszko.
The plot of Young Guns is essentially a retelling of the adventures of Billy, the Kid during the Lincoln County War, which took place in New Mexico during 1877–78. It opened #1 at the box office, eventually earning $45 million from a moderate $11 million budget.
About the Artist: Born in 1929 in Warsaw, Poland, Jan Mlodozeniec is considered to be one of the great masters of Polish poster design. The artist graduated from the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts and had won many prizes over the course of his career. Among them ,several awards and medals at the National Poster Biennial in Katowice (1965, 1971, 1977), First prize at the 2nd Biennial of Applied Graphic in Brno (1966), Gold medal at the 8th International Poster Biennial in Warsaw (1980) and a gold medal at the 5th International Biennial of Posters in Lahti, Finland (1983).
Poster is in overall excellent condition and ready to frame. From a private collection.