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Time to print…lights out! Antiquated printing technology meets eighties sci-fi aesthetic in this special Tron-niversary Edition of DIY Friday. Enjoy…
For those still mourning, Threadless is rereleasing its MJ-inspired Tees…
Eating Brains, Throwing Shapes by Aled Lewis
Beat It by Adam Benjamin White
Some may call him “Lebowski,” but Jeff Bridges will always be “Flynn” to Printeresting.
It was twenty seven years ago, on July 9, 1982, that the world was introduced to the visionary science fiction film Tron. The movie offered many their first notion of The Computer as Environment, presenting the computer as a place as much as an object or tool. Tron pioneered digital technology in film-making (though according to Wikipedia, the Motion Picture Academy refused to nominate Tron for special effects because they considered the use of computers ‘cheating’).
Director Steven Lisberger “was immediately fascinated by video games and wanted to do a film incorporating them… He was frustrated by the clique-ish nature of computers and video games and wanted to create a film that would open this world up to everyone.” Hmmm… a community’s “clique-ish nature” causing its own marginalization. Sound familiar, printmakers?
Here are some silkscreened posters…
Brad Klausen, Tron Poster for Alamo Drafthouse, Silkscreen (w/ glow-in-the-dark ink!), 24″x36″, 2008.
Kayrock & Wolfy, Untitled, Silkscreen, 26′x20″, 2001.
Or should it be (Sun)Block-Printing?
With the summer vacation season in full swing, it’s the right time to discuss the importance of sun protection. While the scientific evidence advises against over-exposure, the creative evidence provided by Tan the Man suggests otherwise…
James Titterton (w/Janine Rewell), Tan the Man, 2009.
James Titterton (the tanned man above) actually conceived of the project. Titterton decided to use his body as blank canvas and called for artists to submit their proposals. After choosing Janine Rewell’s design, he used vinyl graphics and a solarium to realize it on his skin.
Painful.
(via Beth Grabowski)
Originally written in seventies but updated and rereleased as recently as 1996, Studio Tips for Artists and Graphic Designers by Bill Gray is a book that archives old school paste-up practices. The secrets of the pre-digital studio are revealed! From the obvious to obtuse, all manner of practical issue is addressed through text and accompanying illustrations. If some super-virus ever destroys our computers, you’ll be sorry you don’t have copy of this resource. Used copies are available on Amazon for as low as 75 cents!!!
Some pages on print and paper handling…
Printeresting doesn’t recommend #2. Ouch.
From the Johnson County Library (Overland Park, KS) website…
With the help of Barkley Advertizing Agency, the Johnson County Library’s courier trucks have been redeisgned to resemble the delivery trucks of some of literature’s most famous characters. Barkely’s generous pro bono designs remind us of the iconic nature of these books. These books will always be relevant. Just like these classic books, Libraries are icons of American society–today and tomorrow.
(Thanks, JWJ. You’re the #1 Bibliophile)
Summer is for big-budget blockbusters… or so we’re regularly told. Here’s a more low key approach to Hollywood.
Film The Blanks is “an ongoing experiment to abstract and/or reduce film posters.” John Taylor takes pre-existing film posters and filters them through a minimalist design lens, reducing them to the bare essentials. Taylor, intentionally or not, makes a strong case for the importance of graphic design and print media in establishing a film’s identity in the minds of viewers. While it’s fun to figure out what movies go with what poster (it’s actually a game on the website), most fare successful as enigmatic abstractions. Here are some of the more recognizable ones…
A selection of Taylor’s minimized posters are available for purchase as digital prints.
New York Times article on the power of twitter to share pictures.
SHADISHD173/TWITPIC, via Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
It’s summer: time to gas up the car, grab your bear, and hit the road. Check out the reductive woodcuts of Roman Klonek (and more here).
Roman Klonek, On a Dark Desert Highway, Woodcut, 490 x 690mm, 2007.
Roman Klonek, Kuma, Woodcut, 45 x 69,3 cm, 2009.
Roman Klonek, I Miss the Gang, Woodcut, 68,8 x 49,4 cm, 2009.
(via the link masters at EMU Graphic Design)
