80 Years of Monaco Grand Prix Posters

Relive the glitz and glamour of the world’s most famous Grand Prix race through poster art…

Ever since the first Monaco Grand Prix in 1929, drivers and racing fans the world over have been captivated by this exhilarating street race. Sure, it’s not a circuit that’s made for speed or overtaking. But that’s about the only thing that the Monaco GP doesn’t deliver. This is the F1 race that everyone looks forward to every year. With such a glamorous location and fantastic history, it’s easy to see why the Grand Prix de Monaco has provided artists with some great inspiration for the design of their posters over the past 80 years.

1933

Image Source: Art.co.uk

Georges Hamel, also known as Geo Ham, was a famous French illustrator and painter born in 1900. A car enthusiast himself, he’s considered to be one of the world’s most outstanding motorsports artists of all time. Along with a series of iconic posters for the Monaco Grand Prix and 24 Hours of Le Mans, Hamel also sketched caricatures of many race car drivers.

This 50 x 70 cm art reproduction of the 5th Grand Prix Automobile, Monaco, 1933 is available from Art.co.uk, priced £13.99.

Achille Varzi in a Bugatti won the 1933 Monaco Grand Prix.

1948

Image Source: Art.co.uk

This Geo Ham poster for the Monaco Grand Prix 1948, sized 61 x 91 cm, is available from Art.co.uk for £8.99. There’s a framed Giclee print (86 x 117 cm) option too from Art.co.uk, priced £189.99. Art.co.uk uses Giclee digital printing to create vivid, pure colour art prints that are high enough quality to display in a gallery or museum.

Giuseppe Farina in a Maserati won the 1948 Monaco Grand Prix. This was the only one held during the 1940s.

1958

Image Source: Great Big Canvas

The first Formula One World Championship was held in 1950. Regarded by many as the golden age of motor racing, the 1950s were dominated by legendary F1 drivers like Juan Manuel Fangio, Stirling Moss and Jack Brabham.

Great Big Canvas sells J. Ramel’s striking 1958 Monaco Grand Prix poster on a wide variety of canvas, frames, prints or wall peels. The 17 x 24 inch poster print is the cheapest option at $29.99.

Maurice Trintignant in a Cooper – Climax won the 1958 Monaco F1 Grand Prix.

1963

Image Source: Auto Neurotic Fixation

Michel Beligond is another French artist who’s well-known for his Formula 1 and Le Mans poster artwork.

Graham Hill in a BRM won the 1963 Monaco F1 Grand Prix. Affectionately known as Mr Monaco, Hill won the GP here five times during the 1960s.

1973

Image Source: http://monacogp.a-infokan.com

There are several signed editions of this J. Ramel poster for the 1973 Monaco Grand Prix available to buy online. The F1 Merchandise Shop, for example, are selling one autographed by French Grand Prix racing driver Jean-Pierre Jarier for $499.99.

Jackie Stewart in a Tyrrell – Ford won the 1973 Monaco F1 Grand Prix.

1983

Image Source: Grand Prix Posters

Retro Formula 1 boasts a unique collection of merchandise dedicated to the legends of F1 – including many of the vintage Grand Prix posters featured above. If you visit the showroom for their 350gsm A1 Giclee print (£24) of this 1983 poster, you’ll also be able to read the background story to the Monaco Grand Prix that year.

Keke Rosberg in a Williams – Ford won the 1983 Monaco F1 Grand Prix. The next 10 years at Monaco were dominated by the bitter rivals Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna.

1994

Image Source: l'art et l'automobile

This 1994 Monaco Grand Prix poster shows Ayrton Senna in his 1993 McLaren MP4/8 racing car.

Michael Schumacher in a Benetton – Ford won the 1994 Monaco F1 Grand Prix.

2002

Image Source: www.CollectionCar.com

At long last, this poster finally provides some much needed recognition for the harried pit crews at the Monaco Grand Prix. This snippet from Formula One Racing For Dummies explains what actually happens during a hectic F1 pit stop.

David Coulthard in a McLaren-Mercedes won the 2002 Monaco F1 Grand Prix.

2011

Image Source: Art Deco Gal

We’ve come full circle with this art deco inspired poster for the 2011 Monaco Grand Prix.

Sebastian Vettel in a Red Bull – Renault won the 2011 Monaco F1 Grand Prix.

Design Insight

“All these posters advertise the Monaco GP well, apart from a couple of them. I think years 1994 and 2002 promote Grand Prix racing, but let down the advertising of it being held in Monaco,” says Julie Simpkins, one of the experienced graphic designers at Solopress.com’s in-house design studio. “All the others show in the illustrations something indicative to Monaco as well as clearly reading the wording on the poster. Although 1973 shows all the above it doesn’t show the speed and drama surrounding the race as the others do. In fact I think it looks a bit untidy in my personal opinion – and doesn’t give the dramatic feel encompassing the race.”

“It’s interesting to see how things have changed so much in poster design over the years. The early ones have hand painted and drawn illustrations, progressively getting more detailed over the years – to today’s computer generated design using Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator to create the images on the posters.”