Election posters are very much part of the democratic process. They are primarily used to urge people to vote, to communicate political messages, rally public support for a candidate or a cause. They play an important role in our documentary history and are often a powerful way to capture a moment in time. They can be used to educate, inform and inspire people. They also generate loyalty to the cause from the thousands of volunteers who hang the posters up. They were an especially powerful form of communications for previous generations.
In the latter part of the 19th century a kind of ‘cartoon war’ developed between Ireland and the UK. The British cartoonists increasingly caricatured the Irish as simian, ape-like creatures, ogres. The Irish cartoonists, on the other hand, portrayed the Englishman as a normal man, a portly tweedy John Bull. But the Irish used the word as the strong weapon to get their message across. These continued into the early 1900s as political posters were used to promote the cause of Irish Independence, often in a highly emotive way depicting powerful images of the Irish people and their struggle for freedom.
Since Irish independence, before every major vote, election posters appear as if by magic, overnight, in our cities and towns. Every available pole, hoarding and empty space is suddenly festooned with one or more images. Initially, those posters featured striking designs and powerful messages which were intended to capture the imagination of the passer-by. The 1932 Fianna Fáil election poster featuring Mr Cosgrave and the Unemployed is a perfect example of this … Just a few words, crisp typography, very strong print and a powerful message. Even if you were driving past in a car, this message on a pole would have registered with you.
Two Cumann na nGaedheal posters, also from the 1932 election, equally have a strong message and include a caricature of De Valera. You have got to remember when these were published, the Civil War was a recent memory. One poster shows Dev as an artist, the caption on his painting is “Civil War by E. De Valera”. The second shows Dev as a hen, the caption on the egg is “The Empty Formula” (ie, the Civil War ). Our fourth poster is also text based and once again, carries a strong message, vote Fianna Fáil.
Campaign posters have for the last hundred years, been a major factor in Irish life. As they were designed for use, to be stuck on a wall or hung on a pole outside, and therefore subject to the weather, or maybe the opposition tearing them down, not many copies of these historic documents remain. As a result they are scarce today. For instance, I cannot remember when I have seen a vintage Galway election poster.
Contemporary election posters are quite dull compared to their predecessors. They are designed for face recognition and putting the name out there, especially for first-time candidates. They are all mugshots, often photo-shopped, occasionally reused from previous elections thus making the subjects look younger than they really are. Some people think they are simply litter and they are undemocratic in that they favour candidates who can afford them and larger parties. There are laws about when they can be put up and when they must be removed, and in this regard, one of the things that infuriates people is that they are often simply pulled down leaving ugly cable ties behind.
I have only used posters of two political parties because they were the best of what was accessible to me. They also show that the current political sniping between the two is very mild compared to what it used to be.
