To those just joining the poster-collecting community (a nice way of saying, âFor those who have recently contracted the crippling disease known as poster addictionâ), 2012 must have seemed like a pretty cool year. But for those of us whoâve been at this game for longer than weâd care to admit, however, 2012 wasnât just âpretty coolâ: it was a year awash in amazing artwork, a twelve-month stretch that (if anything) provided too many choices for the kind of people who like covering their walls with movie-themed screenprints. There were so many great posters this year, in fact, that the idea of one person ârankingâ them or âpicking the best of the bestâ isâat bestâfoolhardy.Which is why Limited Paper turned to a select group of poster enthusiastsâcollectors, artists, and personalities within the poster-industryâto get a group vote going on the matter. We came up with our picks for the 20 best posters of the year, the first half of which can be found after the jump.If I wanted to prove it, I could probably sit down, do the math, and show everyone that there were more posters released in 2012 than any other year on record. Weâre not going to do thisâpartly because math is boring and partly because thereâs holiday-themed drinking to doâbut come on: doesnât it feel that way? In between Mondoâs weekly drops, Gallery1988âs ongoing series of themed showcases, the slew of galleries that opened this year, and the crop of new artists who have popped up on our radar since Januaryâ¦even if it ainât mathematically so, it certainly feels that way, doesnât it?And so, when asked if I was interested in putting together a list of the âTop 10 Posters of 2012â, I was initially hesitant about the idea: it sounded like itâd be immediately overwhelming. And besides, ârankingâ artwork seems like a dangerous proposition, the first step on a slippery slope towards journalistic oblivion. But then, a moment later, I decided to stop taking shit so seriously, realized that no oneâs actually being âawardedâ anything, and decided Iâd just wrangle together a small panel of âjudgesâ to help keep the tastes of such a list from becoming too narrow. Itâs my hope that this groupâcomposed of hardcore collectors, artists, and workers within the poster-industryâwill also help make decisions on future Limited Paper-related contests, giveaways, and other situations where a judge (or judges) might be needed. Weâve got a contest on the horizon, for instance, and theyâll be helping with that (itâs a good one).Anyway, there were a ton of posters to get through, so many that the first thing that we did was expand the list from âTop 10â to âTop 20â. We could probably do even more, frankly, butâ¦well, thereâs a holiday going on, and gifts to wrap, and drunk uncle to lock in the cellar: we need to keep this thing manageable. So, weâre going to split our top 20 right up the middle, offering the first half today, and the second half early next week (please note that this list only features posters that have been publicly released/viewed up to this point, so anything that might be arriving between now and January 1st will have to either end up on âPart Twoâ orâ¦not show up at all). Without further ado, hereâs part oneâ¦20. Tom WhalenâLAND OF THE LOSTThis Land of The Lost printâfrom the folks at Huckleberry and artist Tom Whalen (who also created one of the yearâs best prints, one thatâll be making an appearance much higher up on this list) was one of our absolute favorites. It dropped back in July, at the 2012 San Diego Comic-Con, and weâre still kinda stumped as to why it hasnât gathered a bigger following. Whalen perfectly captured the weirdness of Land of The Lost here, and while itâs a phrase used so often that itâs long since become a cliché, itâs never been more true than it is here: the colors pop right off the damn page on this one. Excellent work from one of the nicest guys in all of Poster World.19. Ken TaylorâDRIVEYouâre going to be seeing quite a bit of Ken Taylor over the next 18 slots; itâs saying something that this is his lowest-ranking print on our top 20. Taylor churned out one amazing print after another this year, and Drive was the first in that long series of homeruns. It showed up early in 2012, and has been heavily sought-after/traded ever since. If you can get your hands on one, we strongly suggest not letting it go: sooner or later (*cough), Stoutâs going to drop his long-awaited Drive print, and when that arrives we expect it to make a helluva âframing partnerâ with Taylorâs pitch-perfect take on Refnâs instant cult classic. 18. Mark EnglertâTHIS IS MY FARMâ¦IâLL DIE HEREMark Englert has been a mainstay here at Limited Paper since our very first column, and we continue to follow his every move with stalker-like intensity. Just about everything Englert produced in 2012 ended up in our flat file, but it was his Walking Dead-themed pieceâwhich showed up over the summer, just three or four months before Englertâs first-ever Mondo poster arrivedâthat reigned supreme.17. GodmachineâBLACK AS MIDNIGHTAn unexpected surprise--and one that I personally adored-- Godmachineâs Black as Midnight was easily one of my favorites for 2012. The artistâs Dark Crystal print--created for Bottleneck Gallery in NYC-- was another potential candidate for this list, but my lifelong love for all things Twin Peaks-related made sure that it ended up here. The print is stark and bold in person, dominating whatever wall you put it on. If youâre a Peaks fan (or a Kyle Machlachlan enthusiast), I strongly suggest you seek this one out: you wonât be disappointed when itâs stopping people in their tracks when they visit your home.16. Olly MossâBLACK WIDOWOlly Moss produced a ton of excellent work this year (youâll be seeing more of it further up the list), but his Black Widowâpart of Mondoâs six-week batch of Avengers-themed releasesâwas one of his best. Itâs got all the things that make an Olly Moss print great, and it was easily the best of the single-character posters that made up this series. Only downside here? All that white made this print a magnet for chub-rub and incidental scuff-marks. If you get one, handle it as gently as you would the real Scarlett Johansson.15. Kevin TongâMOGWAINot movie-themed, but Kevin Tongâs gig poster for a Mogwai show in (I think) Los Angeles is still more than worthy of a spot on this list (and if itâd been solely up to me, it probably wouldâve ended up even higher). This oneâs absolutely haunting in person, andâhint, hintâif you turn a blacklight on it, youâre going to get an eyeful. Masterful work by the artist known in some nefarious circles as âKevin Dongâ.
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14. JockâTHE DARK KNIGHT RISES (VILLAIN VARIANT)
Those who attended the 2012 San Diego Comic-Con had to run a gauntlet of Twitter-based shenanigans to get their hands on a copy of this, but those who waited it out were able to snag one of the AP versions (which had a 1 in 8 chance of being personally doodled-upon by Jock himself).  2012 produced no shortage of Batman-themed prints, but this was one of our absolute favorites. Canât wait to see what Jockâs got in store for 2013.
13. Martin AnsinâFRANKENSTEIN
Martin Ansin. Universal Monsters. What more needs to be said (besides, of course, âWhere the hell is our Ansin Creature From The Black Lagoon?!â)?  Ansin might not have produced enough heavy-hitters to have landed in our soon-to-be-announced âPoster MVPâ position, but heâs still a goddamn genius.
12. Tyler StoutâTHE AVENGERS (Variant)
The drop that gave us this print was one of the most brutal I have ever experienced. So brutal, in fact, that I still donât own one of these. The scars may never heal, but thatâs still a beautiful print (and far from the last Stout youâll be seeing on this list).
11. Martin AnsinâLOOPER
One of the highlights of Fantastic Fest 2012, Martin Ansinâs Looper was one of the yearâs best. The decision to produce half of them with a gold-tint, the other with a silver-tint was one of the most clever bits of coloring we saw all year, and the likenesses here show why Ansin is considered one of the best in the business. Everyone we know bought both copies of the poster, and many of them are still arguing with themselvesâmonths laterâas to which one belongs in a frame (hint: the correct answer is âGoldâ, but donât ruin the surprise for everyone else).
And that, my friends, is it for part one of our âTop 20 Posters of 2012â extravaganza* (*= extravaganza not included). Weâre still kinda arguing over the exact lineup for the top 10, partly because thereâs so much great stuff to choose fromâ¦and partly because we are incorrigible nerds who really need to examine their priorities. But sooner or later a consensus will be reached, and at that point weâll be back with part one. Weâll also be naming Limited Paperâs first-ever âPoster MVPâ for 2012, the artist who we felt turned in the most incredible work on the most consistent (and frequent) basis. Whoâll win? Whoâs going to end up in the top five? Can we delay part one long enough to add something big that we hear is dropping soon? Stay tuned to find out, folks.
And now, the perma-outro: And that does it for now, folks! This week in Limited Paper, weâre going to be catching up with a few releases we missed last week, looking ahead to one of the coolest-looking gallery shows weâve seen in some time, andâif the stars alignâwe may have a pretty kick-ass interview for you. Congrats once again to our winners (if you havenât checked your email lately, get in there and see whatâs what, folks), and good luck to everyone on the next one: I have a feeling the competitionâs gonna be stiff!