Hasta La Ideas

by Marian Bantjes

photo by Tom BlandUK-based photographer Tom Bland had been collecting images of old signage:

Ghost signs (as they are most commonly known) began to catch my eye when I moved to London, and I inevitably found it fascinating to think about how they’d been created and the level of skill and craftsmanship that was involved. I later realised how attractively some of the signs I was seeing had aged. I was seeing layers of typography, paint, colour – and combined with the texture of the crumbling and flaking materials, many of them were appealing to me as looking like contemporary pieces of design in the vein of work by the likes of Tomato or Ray Gun magazine. I felt that if these faded remnants of the past I was seeing around me were used on new book jackets or record covers for example, they would stand up incredibly well against a new piece of work, the signs having evolved and aged completely naturally in ways that contemporary designers or illustrators often emulate.

To see more of Tom’s work, visit his Flickr set. Cards and prints are available in his Etsy shop.

specimen found in Justin LaRosa’s Flickr

This February marks my seventh year at Art Central. It has been a significant number of years, with some major life-changing events marking the way such as opening UPPERCASE gallery, books & papergoods, getting married (both in 2005), publishing my first book (The Shatner Show, 2007), launching UPPERCASE magazine (2009), retiring from client design work (2009), closing the retail aspect of my studio (end of 2009), having a baby (2010). The original name “UPPERCASE gallery, books & papergoods” and “Vangool Design & Typography” and their corresponding vinyl letters adorning my studio windows no longer apply to what my workspace is today. It is now primarily a creative office, my publishing headquarters. I still love the space and how it has transformed over the years. UPPERCASE has turned into something bigger and better than I could have imagined seven years ago.

And so, I peeled off my letters yesterday. The beautiful ampersand was the last to go. 

The Linotype film will premiere this Friday, February 3rd at the SVA Theatre in New York City followed by questions and answers with the film director and crew, moderated by Steven Heller. Get your tickets here!

Director Doug Wilson’s film poster was one of the goodies in issue #8‘s Letterpress Sampler and 100 copies were randomly inserted into copies of the magazine. Perhaps you were one of the lucky ones! If not, you can purchase a Linotype film poster in the film shop.