Year: 2012

Mural walks in Brixton and East London

The London Mural Preservation Society has organised two walking tours showcasing some of London’s most iconic murals.  Check the PDFs below for full details and contact information for the society. East London Line Mural Walk, Saturday 30th June (download PDF with details of East London Line Mural Walk) Brixton Mural Walk, Sunday, 15th July (download PDF with details […]

25 Jun 2012

Astronomical charts and calculations on 9th Century Mayan wall paintings

This article discusses the recent discovery of these wall paintings in Guatemala dating from AD814.  More images in this guided tour of the site.  See also this past post on the walls of Pompeii.

24 Jun 2012

Childrens Hairdressers revealed in Greenwich Village

This sign was discovered here on the Greenwich Village Daily Photo blog.  It is a recent reveal soon to be covered up again, fittingly described by Ken Mac as “reverting to its time capsule status”.  This development has also been picked up on Frank Jump’s Fading Ad blog and Jeremiah’s Vanishing New York blog.

23 Jun 2012

What signs say in Cambodia, a selection from Kratie

I’m planning a book to profile a collection of photos of hand painted signs that I’ve taken in my current hometown of Kratie in Cambodia.  As part of this I’m working with a local called Chhay to translate the text from the signs from Khmer to English.  It is proving a worthwhile exercise, both for […]

21 Jun 2012

Spirit (Ouija) Board lettering from Ira Coyne

This is one of a collection of brightly coloured Ouija boards from Ira Coyne on Faythe Levine’s blog.  It appears that even spirits can swear when they want to…

20 Jun 2012

Keepers of the Craft film profiles Starr Studios in Dallas

Also, forthcoming, are the Signpainter Movie and another called Faded Paint. I really enjoy these films and the things I learn from them.  They evidence pockets of activity around the world and how the craft is indeed being ‘kept’ by these protagonists.  Keep it up! [Thanks to Traditional Sign Maker Magazine for the link.]

18 Jun 2012

Ghostsigns of Butte, Montana, book in the pipeline

News of another ghostsigns title in the USA, this time from Jeanne Elliott focused on Butte, Montana.  I’ll post a review as soon as I get a copy.  For more books, browse these posts and the bookshop.

17 Jun 2012

Five years of Ghostsigns and a new website

Today is the 5th birthday of this blog following the first ever post on 16th June 2007.  In that time, including my stints on blogger, google sites and posterous, I have uploaded 415 posts, an average of seven per month. As a birthday present I have upgraded the site to a hosted WordPress content management […]

16 Jun 2012

Ukrainian Ghostsigns: Shadows of a Forgotten Past

Areta Kovalska just added a link to this post about ghostsigns from Lviv in Ukraine to the Ghostsigns Facebook page.  It not only has some fascinating images but also some insightful observations on the meaning of these pieces of painted advertising from the former Soviet Union.  See more from Areta on the Shadows from a […]

14 Jun 2012

The ‘Books of Clio’ is a great blog for ghostsigns in France

I’ve just started to follow this blog which is regularly throwing up interesting material.  Above and below are three of my favourites from the last couple of months (from here, here and here), the first for the interesting arrow shape, the Zanussi one because I’ve never seen a washing machine brand advertised in this way […]

12 Jun 2012

The Partial Repainting of F.C. Dyson Provisions & Groceries, Stoke Newington

While back in the UK recently I spotted this while strolling around in my old Stoke Newington stomping ground.  Those familiar with the site as it once was will have some sense of what they’re trying to do here.  I’m guessing the primary motivation is the removal of the graffiti covering the old ghostsign that […]

9 Jun 2012

Film director Danny Cooke profiles David A Smith, an artist and master craftsman of exceptional talent

This fantastic short documentary by Danny Cooke pays homage to the extraordinary work of David A Smith who plies his trade in Torquay on the Devon coast.  David’s website refers to him as a “traditional ornamental glass artist”but it is clear from this film that his talents extend far beyond glass work.I caught up with the […]

8 Jun 2012

1970s London graffiti profiled in (sadly) out of print book

Check this out and don’t forget to eat your prunes! If you know a place to buy the book please let me know.

7 Jun 2012

The stories behind some of the intriguing ghostsigns of Clapham and Battersea

A few years ago I spoke with Russell Norris who, at the time, was writing an article on ghostsigns for  a local free circular publication in South London.  Like him I was waiting for its eventual publication which never came until this week when Russell took matters into his own hands and published it on […]

6 Jun 2012

Then and now: shopfronts 1988 revisited

Via this review of the East End shopfronts exhibition happening now in Tower Hamlets, I came across this incredible site which is the work of Lady Lamo and her colleague Alabama.  It retraces the steps that Alan Dein took in 1988 and documents what has become of the shops he photographed.  The result is absolutely […]

3 Jun 2012

The 100 best typefaces of all time (apparently) via @typotalks and @FontShop

Pictured are the top ten from this list.  More about the judging here.  Found via Typo London.

2 Jun 2012

‘Graphic Design for Cities’, Where Design Meets Craft and More with United Creatives Manchester

This talk at the Sign Design Society on 7th June looks fascinating, check out some of the projects from United Creatives, home of the speaker Chris Edmunds, below.  Pictured is part of The Larkin Trail.  (The trail itself is on its own website.) Download the full event flyer here.

1 Jun 2012

RSPA health and safety posters, original mid-20th Century artworks found

Fascinating discovery at the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, video here, images here.

31 May 2012

RIP Mr. Burbujas (via @ihazrabies)

Photo: Kasey Smith This post on the Perception Filter blog tells a sorry tale of the (partial) loss of this character-filled sign in San Francisco, and some conjecture about hidden meanings within the scene depicted.  It appears that persistant grafitti has led the laundry owners to finally give up on repairing the sign, a very […]

30 May 2012

Hand-Painted Gambia (and Jamaican Bonus)

A recent trip to a wedding in The Gambia, West Africa, was another piece of delight for a hand painted signage enthusiast like me.  In a similar fashion to my February visit to Bangladesh I was often distracted by the variety of forms found in the small part of the country we visited.  Also like […]

27 May 2012

Noor and Noor 2’s new hand painted sign in Bow

An interesting array of lettering types used in this newly painted sign.  Anyone know who did it and when it was done? (Thanks Ross for the photos.)

27 May 2012

(P)Imp and the Herbrand Street ‘Mural’ from @nycsouthpaw

I’ve just started watching Game of Thrones (highly addictive) so can appreciate this new piece of street art now covering part of the Herbrand Street ‘Mural’.  Does anyone know anything about the artist and the reaction of the locals which was quite hostile the last time..? PS. Does the Imp remind anyone else of Eddy Izzard […]

26 May 2012

Hand painted electioneering in Egypt

Will this one day become a ghostsign like the political slogans found in Pompeii?  (Another piece of interesting signage news from the Egyptian elections here.)

24 May 2012

William Stage investigates some of the ghostsigns of St Louis ahead of forthcoming book

Photo: William Stage This article offers a preview of some of the material that is lined up for the forthcoming book, Ghost Signs of St Louis.  I’m very honoured to have been invited by William Stage to write a forward to this follow up to the definitive ghostsigns book and the postcard book from last […]

22 May 2012