Shanghai Propaganda Poster Art Centre

Posters with a distincy TannerRHS (Atlas Obscura User)

Located in the basement of an apartment building, this private collection of posters started as a hobby which expanded into an exhibition of more than 5,000 prints.

The posters on display are all from the first 30 years of the People’s Republic of China and have been given English explanations. The curator and owner of the museum is usually available for further discussion. The posters range from pictures of fierce battles against the Communist Party’s enemies to peaceful visions of life in a model socialist society.

A second exhibition hall focuses on denouncement posters in the form of calligraphy written by ordinary Chinese citizens and posted in public during the post-revolution era. This form of communication, called 大字报 (literally “big character report”) was one of the four approved rights given to citizens during Mao’s later years.

A gift shop with posters and pamphlets for sale is located in an adjacent room.

Know Before You Go

Located in building 4 of the complex. Ask the guards in the parking garage if you can't find the right elevator to take you to the basement level. They are so used to foreign visitors that they hand out small maps as soon as you arrive at the gate! NOTE: There is an entrance fee of 25RMB.