I get requests from students pretty frequently asking questions about designing posters. I thought I would start to share my replies here.
- To start off, please tell me a little bit about yourself & your current situation?
I’m a designer/illustrator living in Portland Oregon.
- How did you get into the field of making music-related visuals?
I started making rock posters in college. But I’ve been drawing since childhood and became interested in the intersection of art and music in high school during the glory days of punk rock.
- What do you think makes a great gig poster?
For me it needs to be graphic. Too many posters are actually giant illustrations. If you can’t tell what it is from 10 feet away it’s not a poster, it’s a blown up illustration. I’m guilty of that myself sometimes. A concept helps. People like a good story. Although sometimes if the visual is cool enough you can get away without having a good idea. The visual should suit the band. You can’t just make whatever and then slap the band name on it. They need to match. Typography should not be an afterthought. It may or may not be integrated into the visual, but it still needs to work with the design and the band. A poster should not be a random giant illustration with last minute type jammed into the negative space.
- Why do you think gig posters are still important today?
I think they’re popular because designers like to make them, thus they pour their heart and soul into them. Unlike many design projects they face which are dull and uninspiring. Fans like them because in a world of ephemeral MP3s and crappy CD covers it’s nice to have an actual artifact that you can hold in your hands. Bands like them because they can sell them to put gas in the van and posters make them look cool.
- When you are working on a gig poster, how does the creative process develop?
Crappy hand sketches and then straight to the wacom and illustrator. Usually there is a lot of visual experimentation that goes on before something gels. It’s not like I make a tight sketch then simply execute it. It’s more of an experimental journey guided by concepts I want to explore.
-Do you have a step-by-step process of essential “must do”s?
No. Nothing that rigid. I’ve been doing this for nearly 20 years, it’s pretty fluid now.
- How, & from where, do you draw inspiration for your concepts, design, colours etc.? Do you have any idols (favourite designers) in the field?
I try not to have favorite designers in the field. I don’t want my work to look like someone else’s. I tend to dig around and try and find things that speak to me that aren’t contemporary. For instance I just found a great book on post war Japanese design. I can’t read it, but the pictures are great. I also look at things like vintage fabric and packaging. Stuff thats been largely forgotten.
- What are some of your main considerations when you are developing a successful gig poster? Do you work a lot with research, target groups etc.?
Target groups, demographics, and all that are how you make logos for corporations. Everyone weighs in and you make something that is supposed to please everyone. Great rock posters come from knowing the music and trying to make something that’s actually cool. It’s an act of creation, not an act of attempting to target the youth demographic. Ever see those typical posters plastered all over town for some Pepsi sponsored event that feature silhouettes of sexy bodies dancing at a club with pepsi logos in the lens flare? That’s the kind of crap you get when you “target the youth demographic”, and it always falls flat because it reeks of a corporate soft cell and nobody can smell that better than kids. They know something genuine when they see it.
- How much of your time is spent working on conceptual solutions on paper before going to the computer (if you use one)? How much of your process involves sketching to work out ideas?
Not much. My sketches are a form of visual shorthand for noting ideas. I work almost everything out on the computer. My process is a form of collage with pieces that I’ve drawn myself.
- To finish off, which one of your gig posters is your favorite & why?
I don’t really have a favorite. Some work better than others, some suck, but I would be hard pressed to pick a favorite.
This pretty much sums up the process of designing a logo
Great story from a master of design