The mountain, as we imagine it and experience it today, is a recent cultural construct. It all begins in the second half of the nineteenth century, when European elites discover the Alps as places of health, recreation, and high social status. Initially linked to health resorts and grand hotels, Alpine tourism starts growing rapidly thanks to the development of railways and the spread of winter sports, such as skiing and sledding. Destinations such as St. Moritz, Chamonix, and Cortina d’Ampezzo become part of an the international imagery.

In the early decades of the twentieth century, advertising posters show the birth of a new iconography of the mountain: snow-capped peaks became reassuring and seductive images, used not only to promote tourism but also consumer products. Modern infrastructure – roads, hotels, ski lifts – are celebrated as signs of progress and conquest of territories once perceived as inaccessible. After World War II, the progressive mechanization of the ski industry made winter sports increasingly accessible, while mass tourism profoundly transforms the Alpine landscape and how we imagine it. Posters emphasised the efficiency of the facilities and the enjoyment of the resorts, solidifying the image of the Alps as an organised and welcoming winter paradise, a place of escape and enjoyment for an increasingly affluent and rapidly expanding middle class.

Among poster designers, names such as Franz Lehnart (1898–1982) stand out, who can be considered the greatest exponent of the Italian mountain poster. He is joined by artists such as Mario Puppo (1905–1977) and Gino Boccasile (1901–1952).