Museum Poster
Make an exhibition-style poster around your own picture: a photo of the work, a detail, a place or anything you have the right to use. Pick one of five layouts (the picture framed in a wide margin, running to the edges, filling one half, under a title, or on an offset colour block) and one of six colourways. The picture is cropped to fill its box, never stretched; choose which part to keep in view. Your title, dates line and venue details are set flush left in a bold sans, in a text area the picture never crosses. Pick a size from A5 to A1 or US Letter to 24 × 36 in and download a PDF at the real size, a proof on US Letter or A4, a PNG or an SVG. Your picture never leaves your device.
100% private — everything runs in your browser. Everything runs in your browser; nothing is uploaded.
The poster-size PDF is the real size you pick (print it at 100% on that paper, or send it to a print shop). The proof fits the whole poster on one US Letter or A4 page with a 2 cm check bar. PNG at 72, 150 or 300 DPI; SVG in millimetres.
Exhibition poster
Your picture
Your text
Poster size
Proof PDF
Runs in your browser with our own code: your picture and your words are never uploaded or saved. The picture is cropped to fill its box, never stretched. You may use what you make here, including commercially, with no credit needed.
How to make an exhibition poster
- Pick a preset, or a layout and colours.
- Add your picture and choose what to keep in view when it is cropped.
- Type the title, the dates line and up to six lines of venue details.
- Pick the poster size and orientation; the info line shows the picture’s resolution at that size.
- Download the PDF at poster size, a Letter / A4 proof, the PNG or the SVG.
What you can use it for
- School, club and community exhibitions
- Art-class and degree shows
- Open studios and pop-up shows
- Prints of your own photos in a gallery style
- Library and archive displays
- Social posts from the PNG
The 14 presets
| Preset | Layout | Colours | Size | Default title | Title size | Picture box |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Framed picture, white, A3 | Picture framed in a wide margin, text below | White with black type and a red rule | A3 (297 × 420 mm) | Light and Shadow | 82.1 pt | 249.5 × 245 mm |
| Framed picture, stone, A2 | Picture framed in a wide margin, text below | Stone with brown type | A2 (420 × 594 mm) | Paper and Ink | 150.9 pt | 352.8 × 346.6 mm |
| Picture to the edges, black, A3 | Picture to the edges at the top, text below | Black with cream type and a gold rule | A3 (297 × 420 mm) | New Acquisitions | 89.9 pt | 297 × 252 mm |
| Picture to the edges, deep green, 18 × 24 in | Picture to the edges at the top, text below | Deep green with cream type | 18 × 24 in | Light and Shadow | 133.6 pt | 457.2 × 365.8 mm |
| Split, oxblood, A3 | Picture on one half, text on the other | Oxblood with cream type | A3 (297 × 420 mm) | Faces of the City | 118.3 pt | 148.5 × 420 mm |
| Split, landscape A3 | Picture on one half, text on the other | White with black type and a red rule | A3 (297 × 420 mm), landscape | Light and Shadow | 114.7 pt | 210 × 297 mm |
| Title on top, ink blue, A3 | Title on top, picture in the middle, details below | Ink blue with an orange rule | A3 (297 × 420 mm) | The Sea Around Us | 114.7 pt | 267.3 × 210 mm |
| Title on top, white, Tabloid | Title on top, picture in the middle, details below | White with black type and a red rule | Tabloid (11 × 17 in) | Light and Shadow | 118.3 pt | 251.5 × 215.9 mm |
| Offset block, stone, A3 | Picture on an offset colour block, text below | Stone with brown type | A3 (297 × 420 mm) | Small Worlds | 114.7 pt | 240.6 × 236.6 mm |
| Offset block, black, A2 | Picture on an offset colour block, text below | Black with cream type and a gold rule | A2 (420 × 594 mm) | Light and Shadow | 118.3 pt | 340.2 × 334.7 mm |
| Framed picture, A4 flyer | Picture framed in a wide margin, text below | White with black type and a red rule | A4 (210 × 297 mm) | Light and Shadow | 56.9 pt | 176.4 × 173.3 mm |
| Picture to the edges, US Letter | Picture to the edges at the top, text below | White with black type and a red rule | US Letter (8.5 × 11 in) | Light and Shadow | 62.4 pt | 215.9 × 167.6 mm |
| Framed picture, 24 × 36 in | Picture framed in a wide margin, text below | Deep green with cream type | 24 × 36 in | Light and Shadow | 170.5 pt | 512.1 × 536.4 mm |
| Title on top, A1 | Title on top, picture in the middle, details below | Oxblood with cream type | A1 (594 × 841 mm) | Light and Shadow | 224.2 pt | 534.6 × 420.5 mm |
Presets change the layout, colours and size; your picture and your text stay as they are.
The five layouts
| Layout | Where the picture and text go |
|---|---|
| Picture framed in a wide margin, text below | Picture inside a wide border, a short colour rule, then the text (picture left, text right on a landscape poster) |
| Picture to the edges at the top, text below | Picture to the top and side edges, text in the lower part |
| Picture on one half, text on the other | Picture fills the left half to the edges, text in the right half under a colour rule |
| Title on top, picture in the middle, details below | Title across the top, picture in the middle, dates and venue under a rule at the foot |
| Picture on an offset colour block, text below | Picture on a block of the accent colour shifted down and right, text below |
Picture size for a sharp print
| Size | Picture box (framed layout) | Pixels for 150 DPI | Pixels for 300 DPI |
|---|---|---|---|
| A4 | 176.4 × 173.3 mm | 1042 × 1023 px | 2083 × 2047 px |
| A3 | 249.5 × 245 mm | 1473 × 1447 px | 2947 × 2894 px |
| A2 | 352.8 × 346.6 mm | 2083 × 2047 px | 4167 × 4093 px |
| A1 | 499 × 490.7 mm | 2947 × 2898 px | 5893 × 5796 px |
| 24 × 36 in | 512.1 × 536.4 mm | 3024 × 3168 px | 6048 × 6336 px |
The picture is read at up to 4,000 pixels on its long side. For the largest posters a smaller picture still prints, only softer; the PDF itself has no size limit.
The colours
| Colours | Ground | Type | Rule / block |
|---|---|---|---|
| White with black type and a red rule | #ffffff | #111111 | #c8102e |
| Stone with brown type | #ece6da | #2b2620 | #8a5a2b |
| Black with cream type and a gold rule | #141414 | #f4f1ea | #e0b84a |
| Deep green with cream type | #1f3a33 | #f1ece0 | #d7a84e |
| Oxblood with cream type | #5a1a1f | #f5ebe0 | #e9c46a |
| Ink blue with an orange rule | #16264a | #f2efe8 | #f08a4b |
Poster sizes and safe area
| Size | Poster | Safe area (each edge) | PNG at 150 DPI | PNG at 300 DPI | Proof on US Letter | Proof on A4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A5 | 148 × 210 mm | 7.4 mm | 874 × 1240 px | 1748 × 2480 px | 112.4 % | 120.7 % |
| A4 | 210 × 297 mm | 10.5 mm | 1240 × 1754 px | 2480 × 3508 px | 79.5 % | 85 % |
| A3 | 297 × 420 mm | 14.9 mm | 1754 × 2480 px | use 150 DPI or the PDF | 56.2 % | 60.1 % |
| A2 | 420 × 594 mm | 21 mm | 2480 × 3508 px | use 150 DPI or the PDF | 39.7 % | 42.5 % |
| A1 | 594 × 841 mm | 29.7 mm | 3508 × 4967 px | use 150 DPI or the PDF | 28.1 % | 30.1 % |
| US Letter | 215.9 × 279.4 mm | 10.8 mm | 1275 × 1650 px | 2550 × 3300 px | 84.5 % | 82.7 % |
| Tabloid | 279.4 × 431.8 mm | 14 mm | 1650 × 2550 px | use 150 DPI or the PDF | 54.7 % | 58.7 % |
| 18 × 24 in | 457.2 × 609.6 mm | 22.9 mm | 2700 × 3600 px | use 150 DPI or the PDF | 38.7 % | 39.1 % |
| 24 × 36 in | 609.6 × 914.4 mm | 30.5 mm | 3600 × 5400 px | use 150 DPI or the PDF | 25.8 % | 27.7 % |
Browsers cap a picture at about 16.7 million pixels, so the biggest sizes stop at 150 DPI as PNG; the PDF has no such limit and is drawn at the real size.
What you can download
| Download | What is in it |
|---|---|
| PDF at poster size | One page the size of the poster (real size), shapes and real, selectable text |
| Proof PDF | The whole poster fitted on one US Letter or A4 page, with a thin trim line and a 2 cm check bar |
| PNG | The poster as a picture at 72, 150 or 300 DPI |
| SVG | Shapes and text in millimetres, to edit further |
Which tool to use
| You want | Use |
|---|---|
| An exhibition poster around your own picture | Museum Poster (this page) |
| A wall label for one work | Art Gallery Placard Template |
| Flat colour fields with a vertical headline | Japanese Poster |
| A grid-based poster with no picture | Swiss Style Poster |
| A free-form poster from a photo and your text | Poster Maker |
Other tools: the Poster Maker lays out a poster around a photo in many more ways, the Gallery Wall Planner spaces frames on a wall, and Poster Sizes lists every standard size.
More free tools
Posters, colour and print?
Design tools that run privately in your browser, with no sign-up and no watermark.
Frequently asked questions
Whose picture can I use?
Your own, or one you have the right to use. The tool adds no pictures, logos or names of its own; every word on the poster is yours.
How is the picture cropped?
It is scaled so it fills its box completely and the rest is trimmed off, so it is never squashed or stretched. Keep in view chooses which part stays: the centre, top, bottom, left or right.
How large should my picture be?
For a sharp print, about 150 to 300 pixels for every inch of the picture box; the table below lists the sizes. The info line under the preview shows the picture’s resolution at the size you picked, and warns when it is low for print.
Can the text run over the picture?
No. Every layout keeps a text area the picture never crosses, and the tests check every line against it at every size.
How is the type sized?
The title takes the largest size that fits in up to three lines without breaking a word, and never below 4 % of the poster’s short side. If the dates and venue lines then do not fit, the title gives up some room; if it still does not fit, the tool asks you to shorten the text.
Is my picture uploaded?
No. It is read into this page only, cropped here and drawn into the PDF, PNG or SVG on your device.
What is the safe area?
A border of 5 % of the poster’s short side. No letter comes closer to the edge than that, so trimming never cuts into the type. Pictures and shapes may run to the edge.
Which sizes can I print?
A5, A4, A3, A2 and A1, US Letter, Tabloid (11 × 17 in), 18 × 24 in and 24 × 36 in, portrait or landscape. The PDF page is the poster at its real size.
Is it free?
Yes. There is no sign-up, no watermark and no limit; the note under the tool says how you may use what you make.
Is anything uploaded?
No. The poster is drawn by JavaScript in your browser. Nothing you add or type is sent anywhere or saved when you close the page.