1948—1992. La comunicazione politica della Prima Repubblica

This research investigates the growth of political communication of the major Italian parties during the First Republic, starting from the first elections, in 1948, up to the last ones, before the dissolution, in 1992.

Political posters appeared everywhere in Italian cities and spoke indiscriminately to all citizens who passed in front of them. Unlike the political meeting, the party press, and all the other propaganda tools that enjoyed great success among the militants, the posters represented the only means to overcome the barriers imposed by ideology and put the parties in contact with the entire population.

The book’s structure focuses on six key elections to cover the vast period by highlighting the main issues on which the political debate focuses, creating insights on specific topics. The high number of images show political communication evolution year after year, highlighting trends, stylistic fields, and new ways to involve and inform citizens.

Throughout the First Republic, the political poster was one of the main tools for political confrontation. Therefore, this research is an archive and testimony of the poster as a fundamental document for the reconstruction of one of the most important historical periods for Italian history, but also a visual heritage of the valuable political graphics in Italy.

The typography pairs Rand by François Rappo with Media – originally designed by Team’77, and recently digitised by team members Christian Mengelt and Erich Gschwind. Both typefaces are available from Optimo.