Poster Process

The Syracuse Poster Project, founded in 2001, brings together community poets and artists to create an annual series of illustrated poetry posters.

The process begins with a call for poetry. Over the summer, the project solicits haiku and other short, three- to four-line poems. Poets submit work about downtown, the city at large or the nearby countryside.

To keep things fresh, the Project may prompt writers with special themes. For 2024, poets wrote about a series of historical Central New York characters. For 2025, they wrote about a series of legendary Syracuse businesses.

Each year, approximately 100 poets participate, each submitting up to three short poems. (Browse the landmarks and locales that have resulted in posters by clicking on the interactive map below.)

From 2001 to 2017, we collaborated with a senior illustration class at Syracuse University, whose students would select and illustrate haiku. In 2018, we broadened our reach by implementing an open call for Central New York artists. Each year approximately 40 artists commit to participating. After screening poems, we allot four poems to each artist. Artists then select and illustrate their preferred poems.

We occasionally supplement the standard posters with a special "reverse process" poster. We commission an artist to create an image. We then publicize the image and invite poets to complement it with a short poem.

In November, we select the best of the traditional and supplemental work for a total of 10 or more posters.

The posters reach the community in a variety of ways:

Through the city’s downtown poster panels. In April, the Downtown Committee of Syracuse posts full-format posters (43 x 62-inches) in the poster panels of Salina and Warren streets. The posters remain on display for a year.

Through poster boxes at the downtown post office.
The Postal Service grants us use of the 10 poster boxes outside the Salina Street post office.

Through the sale of poster prints. These 11 x 17-inch prints are small versions of the full-format posters.

Through a travelling display of posters. We install a travelling flat screen at cafes and other public venues on a monthly basis. The screen features a rotating display of the current year's posters.

Through the installation of permanent poster panels. Now and then we seek and develop new public venues for poster installations, then raise the money to install permanent poster panels at those locations.

Through the re-use of retired posters. We occasional undertake a special side-project, renovating posters that have been retired from the downtown kiosks, and finding venues for their re-use. We have teamed up, for instance, with housing authorities to install posters in the common space of affordable apartment buildings.