Image: Centro de Arte Moderna Gulbenkian, Lisbon
The Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian will mark its 70th anniversary with a poster exhibition that traces seven decades of institutional activity through graphic design. ‘Gulbenkian, 70 anos em cartaz’ opens in the atrium of the Biblioteca de Arte Gulbenkian in Lisbon on 17 July 2026 and runs through 19 October, with free admission.
The show draws on the foundation’s poster collection, which now totals more than 1,500 examples produced between 1957 and 2026. According to the Gulbenkian, the exhibition presents a selection of 70 posters from that archive, one for each year of the institution’s life, and brings together additional graphic material related to activities programmed or supported by different Gulbenkian services over the decades.
The posters were designed to publicize exhibitions, concerts, conferences and other initiatives, but the exhibition frames them as more than functional publicity. The foundation describes the material as documenting the breadth and diversity of its programming across education, art, science and philanthropy, while also showing the artistic and graphic value of the posters themselves. The selection includes work by Portuguese artists and designers from several generations, among them Marcelino Vespeira, Sebastião Rodrigues, Alda Rosa, José Brandão, Jorge Silva, Vivó Eusébio and Change is Good.
The display also includes posters made in recent years by international designers Ian Anderson of The Designers Republic and Kiko Farkas. By placing those names alongside Portuguese practitioners, the exhibition underscores the poster as a long-running site of collaboration between the foundation and designers working in different periods and visual languages.
‘Gulbenkian, 70 anos em cartaz’ is produced by the Biblioteca de Arte e Arquivos Gulbenkian and curated by Ana Barata. The exhibition is part of the foundation’s 70th-anniversary commemorations, and the institution presents it alongside its online ‘História das Exposições de Arte Gulbenkian’ platform, which allows visitors to view around 700 posters related to seven decades of exhibitions and associated initiatives.
The Gulbenkian also points viewers to the full poster collection through the Biblioteca de Arte’s online catalogue, extending the exhibition beyond the atrium display. The practical details are straightforward: the show is at Átrio, Biblioteca de Arte Gulbenkian, Lisboa, from 17 July to 19 October 2026, daily from 10:00 to 18:00, with free entry.
