About The Gallery

Gallery staff hold up the rare 10 foot tall original TOSCA opera poster from 1899.

Gallery staff hold up the rare 10 foot tall original TOSCA opera poster

A note from the Gallery's owner, Jim Lapides

For three decades, International Poster Gallery has been a preeminent source for rare and important original posters. The Gallery first opened in 1994 on Boston’s famed Newbury Street before moving to SoWA, Boston’s Art & Design District, in 2017. In October of 2023, the Gallery closed its doors, though we are continuing to deal posters privately until further notice.

 

It has been a wonderful run, and we thank you for making it all possible! Please feel free to explore our website for past exhibitions and informative pages about poster history as our extensive experience has served collectors well over the many years.

Photo of International Poster Gallery filled with vintage original posters

The walls are alive with posters at our gallery in SoWA, Boston's Art & Design district in the South End from 2017-2023.

 
Display of posters in the Gallery

The Gallery featured some 5,000 original vintage posters priced from $50 to more than $20,000. Our goal: to find beautiful, rare and meaningful posters for you from all corners of the globe. Our inventory is now available virtually.

 

A note from the Gallery's owner, Jim Lapides

For three decades, International Poster Gallery has been a preeminent source for rare and important original posters. The Gallery first opened in 1994 on Boston’s famed Newbury Street before moving to SoWA, Boston’s Art & Design District, in 2017. In October of 2023, the Gallery closed its doors, though we are continuing to deal posters privately until further notice.

 

It has been a wonderful run, and we thank you for making it all possible! Please feel free to explore our website for past exhibitions and informative pages about poster history as our extensive experience has served collectors well over the many years.

Pianist taking a bow in front of a grand piano; burgundy, black, white

Herbert Leupin's playful Mid-Century poster for a piano store in Basel, Switzerland from 1953.

The Gallery's name reflects a love of posters from all countries. Through our exhibitions (more than 50), lectures and inventory, our Gallery has played an important role in the worldwide acceptance of fine Italian, Swiss, Dutch, and Russian posters; as well as Mid-Century Modern, Mather Work Incentive, Travel, Ski, and Avant-Garde posters from all eras.   

 

Like many of our clients, my interest in posters began while decorating both home and office. To my surprise I found that hardly anyone was collecting Italian posters, despite their obvious beauty. I spent many years tracking down these great posters and today we continue as a leading dealer in Italian poster masterpieces.

SOWA art and design district galleries with cherry tree in bloom

More than 50 galleries and shops line the Thayer Street pedestrian way in SoWA. The Gallery is located at the Albany Street side of the district. 

 

 
Night view into the gallery with posters lit up in windows

A poster-filled display creates a dramatic night view from the gallery's free parking area.

The Gallery's name reflects a love of posters from all countries. Through our exhibitions (more than 50), lectures and inventory, our Gallery has played an important role in the worldwide acceptance of fine Italian, Swiss, Dutch, and Russian posters; as well as Mid-Century Modern, Mather Work Incentive, Travel, Ski, and Avant-Garde posters from all eras.   

 

Like many of our clients, my interest in posters began while decorating both home and office. To my surprise I found that hardly anyone was collecting Italian posters, despite their obvious beauty. I spent many years tracking down these great posters and today we continue as a leading dealer in Italian poster masterpieces.

Young woman in front of giant 4 leaf clover shows ticket; red, green, blue, white

A young woman with a lottery ticket emerges from a bed of 4-leaf clovers, making Gino Boccasile's lottery poster from 1940 unforgettable.

We are a multiple winner of Boston Magazine's prestigious Best of Boston award and are included in the Top Ten Boston Travel Guide. Our website was the first vintage poster site to be recognized as a Yahoo! Pick of the Day and has won more than 100 awards for its rich content and extensive inventory, now numbering more than 3,000 in-stock items.

 

The Gallery's exhibitions have been well received in reviews in The New York Times, The Boston Globe, Worth Magazine and the Financial Times. Two of our best were The Italian Poster Rediscovered, the first major gallery exhibition of Italian poster masterpieces in the U.S., and War and Revolution: Propaganda Posters from America in WWI & from the Russian Revolution.  

 

Not to be forgotten is the two year, eleven venue, national exhibition tour of Graphic Intervention - 25 Years of AIDS Intervention Posters curated by Elizabeth Resnick of MassArt. This show from my collection of AIDS posters culminated in the generous donation of all 3,400 posters to The Wolfsonian-FIU in 2012 by collector and benefactor Henry S. Hacker.

IPG exhibition of Swiss Object Posters at the SOWA Art and Design District in 2007.

International Poster's exhibition of Swiss Object Posters at a SoWA  gallery in 2007, a decade before relocating there from Newbury Street.
IPG Exhibition "Titans of the Sea" on the history of ocean liner posters at the Grand Circle Gallery, Boston 2014.

The Gallery's exhibition Titans of the Sea on the history of ocean liner posters, held at Boston's Grand Circle Gallery in 2014.

We are a multiple winner of Boston Magazine's prestigious Best of Boston award and are included in the Top Ten Boston Travel Guide. Our website was the first vintage poster site to be recognized as a Yahoo! Pick of the Day and has won more than 100 awards for its rich content and extensive inventory, now numbering more than 3,000 in-stock items.

 

The Gallery's exhibitions have been well received in reviews in The New York Times, The Boston Globe, Worth Magazine and the Financial Times. Two of our best were The Italian Poster Rediscovered, the first major gallery exhibition of Italian poster masterpieces in the U.S., and War and Revolution: Propaganda Posters from America in WWI & from the Russian Revolution.  

 

Not to be forgotten is the two year, eleven venue, national exhibition tour of Graphic Intervention - 25 Years of AIDS Intervention Posters curated by Elizabeth Resnick of MassArt. This show from my collection of AIDS posters culminated in the generous donation of all 3,400 posters to The Wolfsonian-FIU in 2012 by collector and benefactor Henry S. Hacker.

Intricate, horizontal geometric design for Dutch Art Exhibit; orange, yellow, black and green

J. Thorn Prikker's avant-garde geometric design advertised a 1903 exhibition of Dutch Art in Krefeld, Germany.
Four men descend ramps struggling under heavy loads, one falls forward; black, yellow, red

A Soviet safety poster from 1931 urges workers to "Stay Back When Carrying Cargoes."

Our clients include thousands of collectors and enthusiasts around the globe who rely on us for our knowledge, connoisseurship, and ethical practices. In the age of the internet and sophisticated restoration and reproduction techniques, customers more than ever need a source they can trust, and we work hard to earn that trust on every interaction.

 

The Gallery has also assisted scores of corporations and museums assemble poster collections. Clients include The Wine Spectator, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, the Library of Congress, the Museum of Design Zurich, as well as leading institutions from Europe to Asia.

 

The Gallery is managed by a terrific staff that aims to complement our world class collection with superior customer service. Whether you are looking for one poster or want to assemble or sell a collection, we would be glad to assist every day of the week.

 

I hope you enjoy our website, and urge you to visit our Gallery for one of our shows or just to see how original vintage lithographic posters look in person - a poster like the ten foot tall Tosca can't quite be appreciated on a computer monitor! 

 

SoWa, our new neighborhood, features 35 art galleries, countless boutiques and free parking outside our door - plus many of the most exciting dining experiences in Boston close by. Come visit!

 Jim Lapides graduated with high honors in Art History at Yale University, specializing in Italian Renaissance art. Later he earned an MBA and spent over 20 years in corporate life. His passion for posters led to a second career when he opened International Poster Gallery on Newbury Street in 1994. A dedicated collector himself, Jim has written extensively on posters and has organized and curated many poster exhibitions both at the Gallery and in New England, including a major retrospective of Soviet posters at the Massachusetts College of Art.

IPG's Exhibition of Timeless Poster Images at Hopkins School in 2010

IPG's 2010 exhibition "Timeless Images" featuring poster masterpieces at Hopkins School in New Haven, Connecticut.
IPG poster exhibition at Design within Reach 2016

A view of IPG's Modernist poster exhibition at Design within Reach in Boston in 2016

Our clients include thousands of collectors and enthusiasts around the globe who rely on us for our knowledge, connoisseurship, and ethical practices. In the age of the internet and sophisticated restoration and reproduction techniques, customers more than ever need a source they can trust, and we work hard to earn that trust on every interaction.

 

The Gallery has also assisted scores of corporations and museums assemble poster collections. Clients include The Wine Spectator, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, the Library of Congress, the Museum of Design Zurich, as well as leading institutions from Europe to Asia.

 

The Gallery is managed by a terrific staff that aims to complement our world class collection with superior customer service. Whether you are looking for one poster or want to assemble or sell a collection, we would be glad to assist every day of the week.

 

I hope you enjoy our website, and urge you to visit our Gallery for one of our shows or just to see how original vintage lithographic posters look in person - a poster like the ten foot tall Tosca can't quite be appreciated on a computer monitor! 

 

SoWa, our new neighborhood, features 35 art galleries, countless boutiques and free parking outside our door - plus many of the most exciting dining experiences in Boston close by. Come visit!

 Jim Lapides graduated with high honors in Art History at Yale University, specializing in Italian Renaissance art. Later he earned an MBA and spent over 20 years in corporate life. His passion for posters led to a second career when he opened International Poster Gallery on Newbury Street in 1994. A dedicated collector himself, Jim has written extensively on posters and has organized and curated many poster exhibitions both at the Gallery and in New England, including a major retrospective of Soviet posters at the Massachusetts College of Art.

Website Accessibility

 International Poster Gallery is committed to achieving digital accessibiltiy for people with disabilities. We are trying to continually improve the user experience for everyone, and applying the relevant accessibility standards. We recognize that despite these efforts, accessibility is not always achieved in every area of the website for those visitors using assistive technologies and devices.

 

For visually impaired persons or others with disabilities that need help on our website, please contact us:

Your privacy is always protected. We are always glad to help.

Website Accessibility

 International Poster Gallery is committed to achieving digital accessibiltiy for people with disabilities. We are trying to continually improve the user experience for everyone, and applying the relevant accessibility standards. We recognize that despite these efforts, accessibility is not always achieved in every area of the website for those visitors using assistive technologies and devices.

 

For visually impaired persons or others with disabilities that need help on our website, please contact us:

Your privacy is always protected. We are always glad to help.