Year: 2012

c.Eight storey painted signage from Oslo

This just turned up in the ghostsigns Flickr group and I had to share, fantastic scale from Oslo by holloway steve.

23 Feb 2012

Ghostsigns from Elkhorn, Montana…

…this one particularly caught my eye, more here. Photo: Off the Beaten Path.

20 Feb 2012

Mid-20th Century photos of King’s Cross featuring some painted ads

This set of photos shows what King’s Cross was like 60 years ago with the odd painted ad caught inadvertently by what appears to have been a bus enthusiast.  The one above features a shop sign for Freeman, Hardy & Willis, and there’s this one too.  The full set here.

19 Feb 2012

Frank Jump on 90.7 WFUD

Great radio interview with Frank talking about his work, his book and the topic in general.  (A brief mention of this blog shortly after 12 minutes – thanks Frank!)

19 Feb 2012

Sunderland Echo at the Beamish Museum (via @Beamish_Museum)

A nice photo of this sign, produced for the ‘living’ Beamish Museum, which reminds me that I must visit at some point when I’m back in the UK. Here it is in the archive: http://www.hatads.org.uk/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=9446

18 Feb 2012

Record Breaking Roofad

I’ve been sitting on this for such a long time that I almost completely forgot about it. In fact, Mark sent me details of it back in June 2009 so hands up for my complete slackness on that front! It is another example of a ‘roofad‘ but one with significant exposure, being situated on top of […]

11 Feb 2012

Players, real or poor fake?

This is something of an old mystery but my comments on Flickr never received any response so I thought I’d open the case file again.  Any thoughts on the authenticity or otherwise of the Players sign in this picture most welcome…

11 Feb 2012

Posters coming to life in 1906

A funny little film depicting an increasingly aggressive poster coming to life in Paris.  Made by George Melies, sent to me by Joe Thompson.

11 Feb 2012

How-to guide for large scale hand painted advertising

Nice 11-part photo essay from Business Insider documenting the production of a 10-storey hand painted sign in New York. Text here, photos here, sign produced by Sky Tag.

9 Feb 2012

Faygo: Detroit Ghostsign Revealed by Destruction

Nice photo of the sign in its former glory also available (click here).  Looks like it has been painted at least twice because of the different layout in each image.

7 Feb 2012

Miniature Planet: Ghostsigns for Model Makers

I love this, miniature ghostsigns for use on model railways and other small scale hobbies.  This will be a welcome time saver for those who don’t have the dedication of Emmanuel Nouaillier.  That said, the extent to which they’re modelled on actual signs is difficult to gauge… There is currently a collection of 25 available […]

7 Feb 2012

Barcelona Ghostsign, great photo from Sebastien

Posada Nueva del Progreso, Barcelona via Painted signs and mosaics by Sebastien Ardouin.

7 Feb 2012

No Relevance: Hand-Painted Signage, Gallery and History

More photos and this nice bit of history at: http://www.norelevance.com/current-exhibits/signs/ Albrecht Dürer, in the dedication of his 1535 treatise “Of the Just Shaping of Letters,” expressed such a sentiment with regards to the lost Greco-Roman art of lettering: “In what honor and dignity this art was anciently held amongst the Greeks and Romans, the old authors […]

4 Feb 2012

Hand Painted Bangladesh

As part of my work with VSO I recently attended a study tour to Bangladesh, a country with many similarities to Cambodia but also many differences.  The study was great but I have to admit that I was perpetually distracted by the sheer quantity and (often) quality of hand painted signage, decoration and other forms […]

2 Feb 2012

HAT Archive: January 2012 Additions

A number of new additions have been made to the History of Advertising Trust Ghostsigns Archive.  Some of these are new photos of signs already covered in the archive but many are completely new material for the collection.  Here are a handful of my favourite new additions, the rest can be found by searching for […]

31 Jan 2012

RIP: Bull Durham, Plainfield, New Jersey

Photo: Plaintalker II   More photos documenting the loss of this sign on the Plaintalker II blog.

31 Jan 2012

RIP: Pressman’s Army & Navy Store

The Hoxsie blog reports the loss of this great sign from Troy, New York. This photo from carljohnson in particular adds a lot of character to the sign which still remains in part following structural work to the building.  An ‘after’ photo is available here. See more ‘RIPs’ from this blog.

20 Jan 2012

The Devil is in the Detail: Emmanuel Nouaillier Masterclass

  Emmanuel Nouaillier is a French artist I admire for his attention to detail and his focus on Ghostsigns as subject matter. Below are some of his tools of the trade and a detailed exposition of his techniques can be found on this website. Absolutely fascinating as ever…

20 Jan 2012

‘It hasta be SHASTA’: Great slogan and preservation debate from San Francisco

Great collection of signs and a write up on the Perception Filter blog about this soft drink campaign in San Francisco.  More here.

15 Jan 2012

On Air: Colossal Media Radio Interview

Following Frank’s more recent appearance I came across this radio interview with Colossal Media which I missed in February last year. The slideshow above accompanies the full story and audio download on the WNYC website.  More posts from the Ghostsigns blog about Colossal Media here, it’s great to see them going from strength to strength.

15 Jan 2012

Destruction Awaits for Bull Durham in Plainfield, New Jersey…

…as the host building is about to be knocked down…

15 Jan 2012

Belgravia Ghost Sign Restored

Before (2006/7) After News in this week is that a restoration effort has been undertaken in the heart of London’s Belgravia.  It has been directed at what was once a very faded sign for a horse infirmary (see two more of my pictures from c.2006/7 below).  It was instigated by Belgravia Garage, as the infirmary sign […]

15 Jan 2012

Hemingway’s Ales (RIP)

This wonderful gable end sign for Hemingway’s Ales (Big Ben’s brand) ceased to exist as of 9th March 2011.  It was a truly remarkable ghostsign and featured as the backdrop for my interview with John Seargent in the piece broadcast on the One Show.  Incidentally I notice that it isn’t currently featured in the archive […]

15 Jan 2012

Frank Jump on the Leonard Lopate Show

Listen to Fading Ads on the Leonard Lopate Show by Wnyc, New York Public Radio.  A 15 minute interview discussing the ‘Fading Ads of New York City’.

11 Jan 2012