This handbook explores new conceptual approaches and practical tools for collecting digital posters and graphics. It represents the findings of a V&A project initiated by the Posters Subject Specialist Network, and funded by Arts Council England, investigating ways to address current barriers to collecting material that is created, distributed and encountered in digital formats.

For over one hundred years there has been a rich culture of poster-collecting in the UK, resulting in a broad range of poster collections in museums, archives and libraries. Some of these are historical in their focus. Others maintain a contemporary remit which, today, inevitably means engaging with the digital.

The starting point for this project was the recognition that contemporary collecting is being hampered by the lack of methodology, skills and infrastructure for collecting, preserving and displaying digital graphic material. Consequently, ever increasing amounts of graphic heritage are absent from our collections. The aim of the handbook is to contribute towards the maintenance of ‘live’ collections by providing ideas and strategies for curators in thinking through the decisions and processes involved in collecting digital material and working with the ‘expanded’ forms of the poster that are emerging today. Read more in the Introduction.