Why do you buy posters?

Norman MF Skeeter III

Any reason is a good reason. I just wanted to see what those reasons are. How many you have and, is your collection complete? I am intrigued by the thoughts.

bootlegger10

I started out collecting in 2005 and trying to buy all posters from that point forward and then back filling.  I stopped around 2007 trying to get all shows and just focused on the shows I attended and then the cool looking posters.  Fast forward to 2018 and now I am only buying posters for shows I attend and am now looking to even get rid of those posters where I do not expect to hang on the wall.

My hardcore PJ collecting days lasted about 12 years. 

Collection is an addiction and certain people are wired for it.  That is the only explanation for grown adults to buy multiple versions of the same vinyl like different versions of Barbie dolls.

i guess I collected because they were cool looking and I really looked up to what Pearl Jam represented (fierce love of music, integrity, anti-establishment) and my collecting fading along with those ideals fading with the band.

F Me In The Brain

Can't recall the first one I bought...or why I thought it was a good idea.  
Now I love art and the trading of them

  I do not get them from all shows I go to but try to get all of the ones I love
For sure have grown to love what comes from a few artists in particular and tend to get everything they do when I can.

F Me In The Brain

Also....have about 25 of them hanging and lots more I would love to frame.  (With the 2018 additions maybe 50 more  - not nearly done ...there are so many old ones I would love to get.)

drakeheuer14

If it looks awesome, I will get it. Some people just blow them off as stupid posters, but a lot of them truly are works of art in my mind so it is irritating when people don’t understand that. I like to buy them when the subject matter is unique and not overdone. So at this point I am done with birds! 

Close to 100 prints in my collection now (feels weird to say, but it just kind of happened). About 1/2 is PJ/EV, 1/4 is Mike Fudge and 1/4 is random bands. My 12x36 PJ collection is complete (iso purple moose though) and that was the biggest and most satisfying thing for me in my collecting and if I had to I would stop at those and my shows attended. However, there are about 30 random prints left on the “iso” list. I wanted it all for a while, but being picky is more fun and saves a lot more money. 

...and when your first show is Pitt ‘13 and you see that print in person... that is what really set it off

JojoRice

I just collect the ones that I like and the shows that I’ve been too. Got around 25-30 prints. 

cp3iverson

Just cool to collect them.  I honestly don’t have many at a time because im usually selling some to get one thats more rare lol.  So always under 15 at a time.  They all go in my office, which looks way cooler than my diplomas or certs. 

pashapasaman

Just buy posters that i go to

brianlux

I don't.  But then I grew up in a time where they were often handed out free at places like Fillmore West and Winterland or sometimes just a dollar.  The prices today are over-inflated.  Adjusting for inflation they would be about $7 to $8 today.

PB11041

Shows I have gone to.  I wish I was more into in the 1998 tour.  I was able to pick up a Ward Sutton Randalls from 1996 on Ebay back in the day, for maybe $40-50.  But the 1998 tour was a bit insane within months of the tour they were way overpriced.  A good friend of mine who Ive unfortunately lost touch with got several of the 1998 shows we went to together.  Barrie & Pitt.  Maybe got Cleveland too, getting old and further away.

CopperTom

I buy posters to all shows I attend.  I’m only missing the 2004 Reading, but I’d never hang that one and I have the VFC Elephant Tour poster instead; and the 2013 Wrigley space monster which I can live without.  I have 15 prints framed and hung.  I rotate some prints in and out - but I rotate less frequently than I used to.

on2legs

I mostly collect posters of shows I’ve attended. And I frame the ones I really like.  I feel it’s imprtant to have a focus when you collect otherwise things can easily get out of hand.  So my focus is on shows I’ve attended.  

That being said I will occasionally buy a poster of a show I haven’t attended if I REALLY like it. 

MedozK

I only collect the ones for shows I went to and those with high resell value.... I mean ones I “like”..... jk

tempo_n_groove

No one on here buys them to raffle?  You mean you actually keep the posters and might hang them in your homes?!?

Man this place is weak...

SEACIDE

for shows attended ... memories

on2legs

MedozK said:

I only collect the ones for shows I went to and those with high resell value.... I mean ones I “like”..... jk

mcgruff10

Only shows attended except for u2/pearl jam in hawaii.  I got two more posters getting framed (9 total) and then I am done collecting.

KN219077

Only want posters of shows attended, and luckily that number is low. Still looking for a reasonable Missoula 18, missed it at the show

andyfarrimond

Obsession....I started 4 years ago with a mystery tube on here.  I now have over 500 posters in total, about 150 of them are PJ/EV prints.  I keep saying to myself that I need to stop buying but I can't stop.  it is truly an addiction.

pjl44

It's equal parts memento from a show and that feeling you get when you really connect with the art. 75% of my collection is shows I've attended, 20% others where I like the design, and maybe 5% non-gig art prints.

I just bought a house and you can only hang so many. I'm trying to figure out ways to make them more accessible to flip through from time to time. (All my ticket stubs are in albums and I'll flip through those - a lot more manageable at that size.) I have one portfolio...maybe I'll pick up a couple more.

The real addicts can be a bummer. I don't mind someone buying stacks of prints if they're getting joy out of it. But there's a constant barrage of shitting on artists, shitting on other collectors for buying stuff, etc. You can't avoid it if you want to stay in the loop, unfortunately. That 2XL thread is a perfect example. If anything about show prints is causing you stress or anger, divert your time and money to a therapist. 

Gern Blansten

I started out buying just posters for shows I attended.  That shifted pretty quickly to just buying posters that catch my eye whether I attended the show or not.

It's art after all.

cp3iverson

^^^^^addicting but its fun too

I know someone who tracks down and buys every international version of each PJ album.  Its endless with this band because of the following they have and the merch that they release.  I try to be smart with this hobby.  If im spending a ton on a poster im selling off some vinyl or other posters to pay for it.  

Everytime i say im done i end up buying another poster soon afterwards.  I’ll just say that i plan on starting 2019 with a long break from posters.   I have some house projects to fund

mfc2006

Most are from shows I’ve attended, but I only get the ones that I like. Not all are PJ and I have 20-25 hanging right now. I have a few that I didn’t attend, but love the artwork.

hihobibo

andyfarrimond said:

Obsession....I started 4 years ago with a mystery tube on here.  I now have over 500 posters in total, about 150 of them are PJ/EV prints.  I keep saying to myself that I need to stop buying but I can't stop.  it is truly an addiction.

You've bought 500 posters in 4 years??? I assume you are not/no longer married! 

mfc2006

mfc2006 said:

Most are from shows I’ve attended, but I only get the ones that I like. Not all are PJ and I have 20-25 hanging right now. I have a few that I didn’t attend, but love the artwork.

And a couple of them were gifts.

hihobibo

I started in 2016, and liked the art, so I bought whatever I liked and was cheap ( I never have paid more than $100 for a poster on the resale market). Now that I have around 30, I am more selective, as I try to hang them all. 

Ezo5000

I started in '96 in lieu of buying a shirt. I thought it would look cool at the bachelor pad. I've limited it to shows attended. There are some great prints that I'd like to have but have to draw a line somewhere. Because of this I've also ended up with duds (Vancouver '11). They're almost all on the wall. They're nice conversation pieces and it's great to say that I've been to all of these shows.

lolobugg

started back in 95 collecting PJ and Smashing Pumpkins posters. I like the smell of fresh ink. at this point it is an addiction although I am getting better at it. didn't stand in line as long this year as in the past, but mostly because my wife did the standing/waiting instead.

Zod

I bought my first one at my first PJ headlining gig (Missoula '98).  There was an outside merch and I thought it was really cool.   I wasn't that into it back then.  I remember skipping getting a Vancouver poster because I thought it was too small, and Seattle '98 was sold out because it was a last minute decision and we got to the show 5 mins before they hit the stage (of which I spent years tracking down copies of those posters). 

From then on I've grabbed one from every show I've been too that has one for sale.  PJ and other bands.  Most of the older ones are PJ as other bands have onl recently started to do it.   I haven't framed the uglier PJ ones...  I think I have around 30 or so posters hung around the house.  Maybe 60/40 in favour of PJ.

Fun reminders of concerts.  I love going to shows.  Been to hundred and hundreds of concerts.   May as well decorate your house in a way that reflects you

HesCalledDyer

I started out by getting the one from State College, don't recall when I got it but it was many years after the show. I then got on this kick to get every poster from every show I had been to. Eventually, I started buying posters just because the art was cool, even if I didn't go to the show.  Beginning in 2015, I realized that this was a dumb collectible (from my standpoint) as I was never going to frame them all nor did I have the wallspace to hang them even if I did frame them.  I am now down to 4 Pearl Jam posters.  3 were shows I attended (State College, Baltimore '13, Wrigley '16 Faile) and the last was an EV solo show on my birthday which I didn't attend (Rio '14) but love the art.  I'm not buying any more unless they play WV and the art is appealing.

2-feign-reluctance

One's I attended, and two Chuck Sperry's from shows I didn't attend that were too beautiful to pass up.