I am guilty myself....but what is original today, all through society, in fashion, electronics, automobiles, music, there is a retro feel, even Rob is looking for a 50's look in his business identity.

Things move fast today, and poeple are not always prepared to pay for really advanced design work, most of us run "commercial" businesses and not art galleries....although we are steered by a love of "Sign-art". It is not always possible to give the max on each job....you try for a comprimise that helps lift your work above the competition.

So what's original, we all love and use Mike Jacksons stuff, or Dave Butler, or Dan Antonelli, or Sign DNA etc.

Here are some "Originals" done by me, all made into real signs, sandblasted, truck doors, or hanging. But they are not really original...are they?

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"If it isn't fun, why do it?"
Signmike@aol.com
Mike Languein
Doctor of Letters
BS, MS, PhD
___________________

You know what BS is, MS is More of the Same, and it's Piled Higher and Deeper here

I also treated the tops of the letters like the top of the "d" in the picture. The "e" has a similar look to the one in the picture. I also patterned the "S's" after a look I had seen somewhere before. Notice that the two capital "S.s" are not the same, I manipulated each one individually. In fact each individual letter was manipulated or created individually.

My logo on the left looks nothing like the picture of the wall mural but a closer look reveals certain similarities. I quite often do the same thing with layouts for clients, and I think everyone does.

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Dave Grundy
AKA "applicator" on mIRC
"stickin' sticky stuff to valuable vessels and vehicles!"
in Granton, Ontario, Canada
1-519-225-2634
dave.grundy@quadro.net
www.quadro.net/~shirley

We were all blown away with how teriffic his layouts looked. As a result, we all jumped into his hip pocket and did everything Mike did. We bought his books, tapes and attended his live seminars. In time, many of our signs began to resemble his.

I didn't like being called a Mike Stevens Clone at first. It bothered me so much that I had a chat with Mike himself about it. I remember him asking if I thought my layouts had improved. There was no question they had.

He went on to explain that we often learn by imitation. In time, we would develop our own favorite typefaces and our layouts would take on their own style.

Time has proved Mike to be right. When I look at Gary Anderson's work, I can see the influence Mike had on him and so many others in the Michigan and Indiana area.

Don't be afraid to find that person who is doing what you want to do. When you are lucky enough to find your mentor, be wise enough to learn all you can from them.

I worked in a "big" sign shop as an apprentice. Part of my training was to duplicate the layouts and lettering styles the journeymen sign writters were using.
I had to practice them at night and bring them in the next day, all hand drawn to scale layouts, from real estate signs to truck lettering.

This was back in the 70's, and let me tell you, today's layouts are much different. More color, more outlines, more panel backgrounds, yada yada yada.

How do you suppose everybody upgraded their layouts from the "look" of the 50's signs to the 70's to the 90's to the 00's?
Because they copied from each other and tried to put more pazazzzz in the signs to upsale their customers.

And much of the changing "look" was influnced by what we seen on television. My mentors would watch a John Wayne movie and get layout ideas from how the artist did the movie title and the credit names.

Remember the TV sitcom "The MONKEES" (the very first video rock group?) The Logo was designed in the shape of a guitar. Now guess where we see that same style lettering in the year 2001? At the Milwaukee Panel Jam as part of the logo lettering. This logo did look neat, but it had the "look" of the signs in the late 60's (flower power signage)

I think the point here is you have to provide what the customer is use to seeing as the "current layout look" of the times. You can't do the layouts and color arangements of the 50's and 60's (unless its a retro theme) and please decerning customers. You have to have to be able to produce the current "look."

Try to letter a new race car like they were lettered in the 60's and you will get laughed out of the sign business.

Use lettering styles from the 1920's on the space shuttle and you'll get fired off the job in a heartbeat.

That's the point I'm trying to make. You have to copy and upgrade to the current "look" everyday, every month, every year.

No one owns "the look", it just happens, it changes over the years, everyone feeds off each other's designs and color arangements.

In conclusion....(what a windy soapbox I'm typing out tonight)

By copying each others styles, you are doing exactly what you are suppose to be doing, namely keeping the current layout "look" current for what your customers expect to see.

Im done now....did you learn anything?

That familiar, yet, distinguished ornamental "g" on the Belvidere wall mural has a lot of significance to my family! Such a treat to see post.
(I couldn't be there due to my daughter's wedding plans that year, but my brother and his family live right down the street and were photographing and watching. It was so exciting to them).
My brother had worked at the Chrysler plant since 1968 and recently retired while his wife has been teaching 7th grade English class at the Belvidere high school since the early 70's. Their son enjoys them also.
As we pass by the murals it comes to my mind that the significance of the letter "g" (with the letter and automobile working together), represents the two careers they chose to work for a major part of their lives. My brother videotapes almost all the events of the community such as the beauty pageants at the fair and his wife's performances in the symphony orchestras to the car shows. (There is a lot of repetition in music and automobile production, by the way!)
What a gift that the Letterheads came from near and faraway to present and "replicate" this homage of art in vivid color and design. It has portrayed the lives of the human factor of the community.
And it is truly a compliment that complements everyone!
(this could be on the walldog post too!)
The folks there really do appreciate your efforts everyday.

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Deb**Creative Signs
(and more)

[This message has been edited by Deb Fowler (edited September 06, 2001).]

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"A wise man concerns himself with the truth, not with what people believe." - Aristotle

When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro. - Raoul Duke (Hunter S. Thompson)

Cam
Finest Kind Signs
256 S. Broad St.
Pawcatuck, Ct. 06379
"Award winning Signs since 1988"