Exhibition of the Winners – 100 Best Posters 25 at the SANAA-Building on Zollverein

From 3 July to 2 August 2026, the German Poster Museum (Deutsches Plakat Museum im Museum Folkwang) hosts the exhibition 100 Beste Plakate 25 Deutschland Österreich Schweiz at the UNESCO World Heritage Site Zollverein. The exhibition showcases the award-winning designs from the largest poster competition in the German-speaking world. It is organised in collaboration with 100 Beste Plakate e. V., Museum Folkwang, Stiftung Zollverein and Folkwang University of the Arts. Admission is free.

100 Beste Plakate 25 Deutschland Österreich Schweiz brings together the award-winning works of 2025 and offers a focused insight into current poster design and design trends across the three Ger man-speaking countries. As several of the winning entries consist of poster series with multiple motifs, the exhibition comprises a total of 159 posters.

The exhibition in Essen is the second stop of the international tour, following its opening in Berlin. Since 2008 the German Poster Museum at Museum Folkwang has been a partner of the competition and has presented the award-winning posters annually. Returning once again to the UNESCO World Heritage Site Zollverein, the exhibition invites visitors to explore the diversity of contemporary poster design and experience the full range of outstanding works from the competition year 2025. Following its presentation in Essen, the exhibition will travel to further institutions in Germany, Switzerland, Austria and abroad.

Jury and Selection
The selection of the “100 Best Posters” was in the hands of an international jury. This year, the jury comprised Enrico Bravi (Vienna), Malte Martin (Paris), Sascia Reibel (Berlin), Sven Tillack (Stuttgart) and Annik Troxler (Riehen near Basel). A total of 2,297 individual posters and poster series submitted by 676 studios, graphic designers and creatives were considered.

The five-member jury selected 30 works from Germany, 8 from Austria and 62 from Switzerland, rang ing from commissioned projects to student works. In terms of design, the competition year 2025 stands out by both minimalist typography and black-and-white contrasts, as well as bold imagery and expres sive colour compositions. The selection demonstrates how the poster continues to evolve as a medium between visual condensation, experimental typography and narrative image strategies, while responding to social, cultural and aesthetic developments.

The proportion of award-winning cultural posters remains consistently high: more than 80 percent of the selected works promote concerts, theatre productions, museum exhibitions and other cultural events.

A particularly striking feature of this year’s competition is the strong focus on posters tailored to specific target audiences. Those not directly addressed often need a second look to fully grasp a poster’s mes sage. This applies equally to posters created for club culture and to those promoting museum exhibi tions. The geographical distribution of the selected works is even reflected in their formats: around 80 posters are presented in the distinctive Swiss “Weltformat” poster size.

Graphic Design with a Stance
This year’s selection feature more posters addressing social and political issues. Posters once again prove themselves as a powerful medium: they call for critical reflection and resistance, advocate for human dignity and queer rights, and take a stand against exclusion and political indifference. In doing so, they reaffirm the poster’s enduring role as a public platform for visual and political expression.

Materials and Design Practice
Another notable aspect is the wide range of analogue and digital techniques employed in contemporary poster design. Risograph printing and screen printing appear alongside pen plotters, photographic col lages, hand-drawn lettering and experimental materials. Here, the poster functions not primarily as a vehicle for advertising, but as a field of artistic exploration and creative practice.

Materialitäten und Gestaltungspraxis
Auffällig ist zudem die große Bandbreite an analogen und digitalen Techniken, die in die aktuelle Plakatgestaltung einfließen. Risografie und Siebdruck stehen neben Pen-Plotter, fotografischen Collagen, handschriftlichen Setzungen und experimentellen Materialien. Das Plakat erscheint nicht primär als Werbeträger, sondern vor allem als Feld künstlerischer Praxis.

The Competition 
The competition 100 Beste Plakate des Jahres. Deutschland Österreich Schweiz (100 Best Posters of the Year. Germany Austria Switzerland) has been organised internationally since 2000 and is today regarded as one of the most important awards for contemporary poster design, extending well beyond the German-speaking world. Originating from an initiative launched in 1966, it continuously documents the development of the medium in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Each year, numerous graphic de signers, students, agencies, studios, clients and printing companies take part.

Published to accompany the exhibition is the yearbook “100 Beste Plakate 25 D A CH”, released by Slanted Publishers, €35.

 An exhibition by 100 Beste Plakate e.V., Berlin, in collaboration with the German Poster Museum at Mu seum Folkwang, Stiftung Zollverein and Folkwang University of the Arts.

Information 
100 Beste Plakate 25
Deutschland Österreich Schweiz
3 July – 2 August 2026 
Opening: 2 July, 6 p.m. 
UNESCO World Heritage Site Zollverein, SANAA Building, First Floor 
Opening Hours: daily,12 noon – 18 p.m. 
Admission is free.

General information, the winners of this year’s competition and a comprehensive online archive dating back to 2001 can be found at www.100-beste-plakate.de.

Information on events accompanying the exhibition is available at www.museum-folkwang.de.

Getting There
By car: Parking areas A2 and B, access via Bullmannaue.// By public transport: Tram 107 (stops: Zollverein or Abzweig Katernberg), regional train lines RB 32 and RB 35 (stop: Zollverein Nord), and bus 183 (stop: Kokerei Zollverein).

Publication
100 Beste Plakate e. V. (ed.): 100 Beste Plakate 25 Deutschland Österreich Schweiz 
Designed by Ira Ivanova and Lou Hillereau (Berlin) 
German and English edition 
Slanted Publishers, 2026, 344 pages, ISBN 978-3-69202- 003-7, €35

Press contact
Museum Folkwang: Anna Rutten, presse@museum-folkwang.essen.de 
Stiftung Zollverein: Markus Pließnig, presse@zollverein.de 100 
Beste Plakate e.V.: Dr. Hermann Büchner, presse@100-beste-plakate.de