BY SCOTT STIFFLER | In a tough, pre-pandemic economic environment made all the more challenging by the subsequent addition of social distancing, not every good idea thrown at the wall a few years back has stuck. So it’s a pleasure to include Poster House on the list of local treasures able to survive, and poised to thrive.

The visually dynamic museum on the 100 block of West 23rd Street (btw. 6th & 7th Aves.) opened its doors on June 20, 2019, with a mission to present “the impact, culture, and design of posters, both as historical documents and methods of contemporary visual communication.”

Has Poster House delivered on that promise? Tough to say, since, embarrassing to admit, the author of this article hasn’t been on site quite yet. But more than one trusted confidant—whose standards are as tough as they are fair—practically beams when the topic turns to Poster House. The museum, we’re told, is worth a visit for its abundance of stop-and-stare-worthy images as well as the programming that peers beyond what’s there for the peepers, to probe the purpose behind the image. (Make no mistake: Poster House is aware of their namesake’s power to motivate and persuade.)

Persuaded to pay a visit? If so, Saturday, July 10 is a day made to order, for the uninitiated and the frugal alike. That’s when Poster House opens its doors to the public, for free admission as well as packed roster of special events and activities.

For the museum, which closed in March of 2020, reopened in late August of that year, and has been operating ever since in accordance to required safety protocols, Saturday’s event represents a chance to reintroduce themselves to the public.

“We’re getting back to on-site programming,” said Poster House Director Julia Knight, while appearing before the June 14 meeting of Community Board 4’s Arts, Culture, Education, Street Life (ACES) Committee. The resumption of interactive offerings, she noted, makes the museum a perfect destination for school tour groups.

Knight asked CB4 to spread the word, noting such tours have become their “bread and butter.” Book a school group tour before Sept. 1, and you’ll get 50 percent off a second tour.  (True to their word to spread the word, ACES Committee Co-chair Allen Oster reached out to Chelsea Community News to make sure we knew about the anniversary and the tour discount.)

Knight further noted that their free monthly Community Day, where admission is free to members of the surrounding area, returned as of June 19. For July, the entire world gets the free admission, when Poster House combines that month’s Community Day with their Second Birthday celebration. We could go on and on, telling you about the abovementioned goodies—but true to form, Poster House has already done that, and in the manner for which they are know. See the poster directly above and to the left, as well as the poster directly below, for all the info you need to know about the July 10 event. For info about current and upcoming exhibitions and activities, visit the Poster House website by clicking here. View the June 14 ACES meeting on Community Board 4’s YouTube channel, by clicking here.

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