Category: Art

James Voshell

James Voshell made photorealistic painting and murals on buildings in Baltimore. There is an excellent new article about him in Baltimore magazine which I linked to below.

JAMES W VOSHELL    photorealist artist – Home

I just ordered this book about him and his work

Here are my photos of two of his murals that are gone now. His mural of the chess players is my favorite of all of the wall murals I have seen in Baltimore.

Old neon in Las Vegas

I haven’t been to the Neon Museum in Las Vegas but I have seen the old signs they have displayed throughout the old part of town. This is a link to a map of the restored neon signs. My pictures from 2009 are below it. I have five neon signs in my house. I think neon is great.

2018-restored-signs.pdf (neonmuseum.org)

Learning from Las Vegas is a great book on Las Vegas architecture and signs.

Letterpress posters – Globe and Hatch

Globe Poster Printing Corp. was a Baltimore letterpress poster company that printed a large selection of concert posters. The company went out of business but their equipment is still operational. It’s at the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore. They are still making posters which are available here. They also made posters for the New York Film Festival with a design by John Waters and the Stax ’68 box set.

History of Globe – Globe at MICA

Globe Poster: An Illustrated History Of American Music : NPR

Nashville’s Hatch Show Print still makes posters, primarily for country music shows. They also do an annual BlobFest Poster. Their online shop is here:

Hatch Show Print Shop

This is a fine film about letterpress

Coronavirus graffiti

A terrible pandemic has inspired some fine graffiti all over the world

Coronavirus inspires world graffiti (usatoday.com)

See the Recycled Propaganda web site. They sell hats and a poster based on this takeoff of Hunter Thompson’s Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas which had art by Ralph Steadman.

also

Ghana film posters

History of the smiley face

Who Really Invented the Smiley Face? | Arts & Culture | Smithsonian Magazine

Bernard Spain, 86, a Philly-based retail entrepreneur who held the copyright for the smiley face (inquirer.com)

I remember the Spain’s store in the Cheltenham shopping center

Government agencies hiding criticism of Trump

The National Archives blurred a photo to hide criticism of Trump. The Library of Congress pulled a photo which included signs opposing Trump policies. This self-censorship is dangerous.