The digital age has ment the end in Ghana of a unique industry and art form.
Piles of amazing one-off hand painted publicity posters crafted by local amateurs have now become valued collectables. An exhibition in London surveyed some of them confirming they have taken on a second life……
(These posters needed to be portable as well as attention-grabbing. They were usually painted by hand onto sacks or canvas, as large printing presses couldn’t be imported during Ghana’s military dictatorships of the 1970s and ’80s. The posters were then rolled up to travel from town to town as part of mobile video clubs.)