Promotion into art?

After looking at a vast amount of gig posters out there that are currently in circulation and some older ones it occurred to me that the line between promotional materials and art is blurring. posters are becoming artefacts that the band uses for more than just promotional purposes.


http://vimeo.com/46442318

After watching this video about the design process for a Dave Matthews Band show in Florida a noticed certain things. more effort went into the aesthetics of the poster such as the images used and colour scheme over content. the useful information such as the location of the show and date where sort of 'hidden' within the image forcing the viewer to look deeper into the image to get the message, but would people really do this for a gig poster? No information on ticket prices, stage times or how to get tickets were included on the poster. But does the poster need this information.


Before the internet how else would bands and artists get the word out about each individual show without using posters? however now there is no cheaper way to promote shows than the use of email newsletters, social media etc sop why would a band pay for posters to be made and distributed for each show, which nearly renders them obsolete.

It could be said that posters are devoid of purpose, which also frees them up to become art which as a result gives them a purpose once more.

Things to explore....
Does my design have to have 'useful' information on it?
Can I just focus on the art?
What kind of art would suit a Nottingham based show?