IT'S in an apartment basement, and it's not conveniently located. But Frank Yang's collection of propaganda posters is well worth the detour, as it is one of the few collections of government posters from 1949 to the 1970s.

　　Each poster is an original of the 10,000 to 30,000 that were circulated but very few remain today.

　　Yang estimates that his is probably the largest collection in China, if not the world, and certainly the only one in Shanghai.

　　Yang began collecting about 10 years ago, buying some pieces and being given others. His friends and business colleagues know of his interest and helped him locate new pieces. Because few people are as interested in preserving this period of Chinese history, Yang says he has found it relatively easy to compile his 3,000-piece collection.

　　Some of the main contributors have been the artists of the works themselves. The artists - those still alive - are in their seventies and eighties.

　　Many consider the posters an unpleasant part of their past, when they were not free to paint creatively, but had to produce their art to meet strict specifications. They often felt they were helping spread lies to the public.

　　Yang has met and befriended many of them. Because of the painful memories associated with their propaganda posters, the artists have often been very willing to give them away.

　　The woodcut prints and colorful paintings include a Chinese soldier fighting his puny American counterpart in Indochina, idealized peasant scenes, advice on combating schistosomiasis ("xue xi chong bing," an intestinal parasite widespread in Asian rice paddies in the 60s) and of course Chairman Mao, smiling beatifically in a number of settings. Displayed together, these images are an engaging chronicle of events in China throughout the "cultural revolution" (1966-76).

　　Yang is interested in the preservation of Chinese history in general. Concerned that most people never notice the architecture surviving from the former European concessions and from the former Jewish section of Hongkou District, Yang also conducts tours of old Shanghai.

　　He considers it a pity that these buildings are not maintained, for they would contribute to the city's attractiveness to residents and tourists. Hopefully, his efforts to make locals and visitors aware of Shanghai's rich past will encourage renovation rather than destruction.

　　Poster Exhibit (for the next 2 years)

　　868 Huashan Lu