The Lithographic posters

Parallel to the painted Giant cinema posters advertising a film at the cinema theater it was shown, there was a need for advertising the opening of a film in the neighborhoods of Athens. This was done with Lithographic posters. These posters, measuring 80×60 or 100×70 cm, were usually hung on thin wooden frames attached to the outside walls of houses and buildings at ground level. Today, there are certain buildings of the 20’s and 30’s in the Exarhia neighborhood in Athens where such wooden frames, former sites for the posters, still survive (Fig. 43).

When the film was particularly noteworthy, there often was the possibility to draw and print two, three or even four versions of the Lithographic poster, thus giving the artist the possibility to picture the actors of a big production in a better way or to present more of the film’s scenes and, in general, win the passerby’s attention in more than one ways.

Printed lithographically in 200 or 300 copies with the use of four or six colors, they were mainly produced at the ateliers of the Pehlivanidis brothers, Β. Papachrysanthou and Co., Spanoudis, K. Saxonis, Voulgaridis-Hatzistilis, Nikolopoulos-Samaras, Phoenix etc. (see also p. 206). These posters are a thematic and drawing prelude to the concept followed for the creation of the Giant cinema poster by the same artist. The small size of the poster and the need to include all necessary information on its surface, were the constraints that often made these compositions especially
dense.

By creating the Lithographic posters VL.12 and VL.17 of the Greek films THREE DETECTIVES and THE YOUNG LADY’S FOOL,
G. Vakirtzis prepared the prospective audiences for the Giant posters they would see on the cinema façades.

The portrait of the famous protagonist or that of the pair of protagonists was the main theme here just like before: VLM.1, VL.2, VL.1. Celebrity actors’ unique facial features are stressed, so that they are recognized instantaneously and directly (see also p. 34). Strong brush strokes and striking colors create a sense of movement, passion or agony. If the actors of the film are not well-known, a characteristic scene that alludes to the genre of the film is depicted.

The background is concise (VL.17), slightly narrative: VL.4, VL.42, or completely non-existent, with one unified bright color covering the surface: VL.6, VL.7.

The letters of the titles are designed in such a way as to underline the philosophy of the film: they either have intense movement, intricate graphic elements or a special gravity: VL.31, VL.9.

The posters and their models demonstrate the ability of Vakirtzis in composing the main subject and designing the purely graphic elements that surround it. The creative process differs depending on the genre of the film, and the period it is drawn. His first posters have a dense composition that stresses the narrative element of the film. Later, he opts for more abstract solutions, thus creating simpler, more suggestive compositions

Over time, the increasing familiarity of the audience with films gives Vakirtzis the ability to tackle themes with greater freedom. He sporadically chooses the method of caricature to draw many well known protagonists in various comedies: VLM.12, VLM.13, VLM.14, VL.1, VL.3, VL.29, while he later uses collage to incorporate photographic portraits of actors in his compositions. For some of his posters he chooses to make use of quality black and white photos, transferring them on the poster and emphasizing the intense contrast of light and shadow: VL.21, VL.25.

A turning point in the poster painting by G. Vakirtzis is marked by the posters for the film ELECTRA, which came out in three versions of a similar subject, and where elements from his 196013 “Kores” cycle of paintings, are traced (Figs 44-47).

VL. 34
Lithographic poster, 100×70 cm., 1962.

VLM. 15 “Kores”, 1960. Oil on paper, 68×55 cm.

VL. 33 Lithographic poster, 80×60 cm., 1962.

In general, drawings designed for advertising posters of films are characterized by greater density in their visual vocabulary and by limited dramatic intensity. The visual theme was the source of the initial surprise element and the main advertising vehicle. The title had a complementary function and had an equally important role, primarily as a piece of information, but also as a graphic design element that fit the depiction. The names of the leading actors, usually two, were the only necessary pieces of information and with no importance to the artist. The coexistence of the pictorial theme and the title as one unified whole was the artist’s main goal.

Drawings meant to be printed as advertising lithographic posters display a similar technique but are constrained by the specific dimensions of the printed poster (80×60 or 100×70 cm), as well as by its shape. This limited surface had to accommodate the picture, the title and the names of the leading actors. That usually leads Vakirtzis to use the unified, monochromatic background, on which the predominant figure is the leading actor, often along with a scene from the film, while the title is a main staple at the top or the bottom part of the poster In the lithographic posters, the main element of surprise was the intense color on as large a part of the surface as possible. Color stood out from the limited dimensions of the poster and attracted the attention of the passer by. The machines of the Pehlivanidis printing-house were unique for their time and the colors, up to six in one given composition, were combined under the watchful eye of Vakirtzis himself with the help of suggestions he noted on the processed color plates. The choice of color and their combinations often reversed known rules, creating new unconventional and risky balances: VLM.10, VL.6.

Despite all difficulties, most of his compositions, if examined as complete pictorial-advertising proposals, present great interest and innovations in their execution, while the artistic result is, in most cases, excellent. Extremely few are the cases where samples of the artist’s work survive from the entire realm connected to one specific film, thus making it difficult to have access to the complete method of handling of any one given order, e.g. ALIKI IN THE NAVY (Figs 48-50).

There is enough high quality material from all categories (Lithographic posters, drawings, sketches/models, temperas and torn parts of Giant cinema posters) for the creation of a pictorial ensemble which enables us to evaluate the artist’s contribution to this art form.

The unique artistic identity of Vakirtzis, which is evident in his painting later on, is demonstrated by his characteristic creative style, the dense and inclusive drawing and the effortless use of color that marked his work. His unique outlook gave him the option of isolating an element that interested him and transform it, through an abstract procedure, to a thematic core. This element indicated the manner, the genre and the effect he wanted to communicate. What made this unique was the quality of the metamorphosis and the execution.

It is conceivable that as an artist Vakirtzis could not look at his work from a distance and place it in the framework of the avant-garde. His role was that of an artistic creator and he handled it with great gusto. Twenty years after his passing, his work is regarded with objectivity. Times have changed and the contribution of the artists representing the “Athens School of painted Giant cinema posters” has been evaluated in its entirety

The space and time Vakirtzis put to use to create his work on the cinema façades, apart from the surreal otherworldly dimension it creates as an image for the contemporary “reader”, firmly justifies his characterization as the most inspired painter who ever created for cinema in Greece.

Irene Orati

NOTES
1 Athenaeum magazine, issue 3496, October 27, 1894, p. 576.
2 A note should be made of the fact that 100 leading poster artists came together in a com0mon exhibition in 2001 to mark the 100th anniversary of Lautrec’s death by each designing a poster dedicated to the artist, see Le nouveau Salon des Cent. Exposition Internationale d’affiches, Anton Beeke (ed.), Odyssée, Paris 2001.
3 1930-1938, and graduated in 1944, see also D. Tsouhlou, A. Baharian, The Athens School of Fine Arts, A Chronicle 1836-1984, Athens 1984, p. 310. See also in the present volume, pp. 256, 258-259.
4 The term “Giant cinema poster” was first used in an unsigned note [probably written by F. Frantziskakis] in ZYGOS magazine, issue 3/1966, p. 51. See also in the present volume, p. 247.
5 G. Vakirtzis, “Open Thoughts”, 1974, in Yorgos Vakirtzis, Athens s.a. [1989], p. 46.
6 The Hellaffi Collection was granted by the Ministry of Culture to the Cinema Museum of Thessaloniki.
7 G. Vakirtzis, “Thoughts on Art in General”, in Yorgos Vakirtzis, Athens s.a. [1989], p. 90.
8 G. Vakirtzis, “Why I write”, op.cit., p. 15.
9 Comments by Y. Moralis and A. Kontopoulos in Giant posters of Cinema by George Vakirtzis, Athens s.a. [1968], pp. 84, 86.
10 D. Papastamos in Yorgos Vakirtzis, Athens s.a. [1989], p. 13.
11 See S. Fyntanidis, in Chr. Margaritis, ed., Giant Cinema Posters from the cinemas of Athens 1950-1975. The Hellaffi Collection, Athens 1993, p. 16.
12 G. Vakirtzis, “Documents and decors”, in Giant posters of Cinema by George Vakirtzis, Athens, s.a. [1968], p. 71.
13 See Yorgos Vakirtzis, Athens s.a. [1989], p. 53, figs 5-7. I thank Christos Ph. Margaritis, for his invaluable information and comments, in addition to his contribution for the selection of photographs and documents, that enriched my text.

I. O.