Gig’s Up: 50 Years of Milwaukee Punk Posters, September 26–December 21
Opening Reception, Friday, September 26, 5pm–8pm
Panel Discussion “Nightclubbing” at 6pm followed by a performance by Eric Blowtorch
Gig’s Up: 50 Years of Milwaukee Punk Posters opens at Real Tinsel with a granular, gritty, and comprehensive look back at the city’s raw, unapologetic visual soundtrack. For five decades, Milwaukee’s punk scene has thrived in basements, bars, and DIY venues, and its posters—hand-drawn, photocopied, silkscreened, and stapled to poles—have served as the bold markers of that underground energy. This exhibition gathers hundreds of these handmade works, from one-night-only flyers to iconic designs, creating a sweeping chronicle of how punk’s spirit was broadcast and preserved on paper. Highlights include original works by artists Richard Cole, John Hill, Guy Hoffman, James Kloiber, Francisco Ramirez, and Eric Von Munz, alongside countless contributions salvaged from the personal archives of the scene’s most loyal fans, DJs, and musicians.
More than a gallery show, Gig’s Up is a celebration of the community that built and sustained Milwaukee’s alternative sound. Throughout the run of the exhibition, Real Tinsel will host live performances and panel discussions that dig into the stories behind the posters, the venues they promoted, and the music that made them matter. It will also consider the unique style of Dada-inspired esthetic that guided the makeshift publicity. By bringing together artists, historians, and the very people who lined the streets with these flyers, the show amplifies punk’s and alternative music’s enduring influence while honoring Milwaukee as a city where DIY creativity has never stopped thriving. It’s not just a retrospective—it’s an invitation to see, hear, and feel the electricity and ingenuity that kept the amps buzzing for fifty years.
