Inspired by Signs

Artistic and other interpretations of ghost signs.

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
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
Adzookie

The History of Advertising Trust Twitter stream recently brought this initiative to my attention from mobile advertising firm Adzookie. Essentially they will pay your mortgage if you agree to have this garish design slapped onto the external walls of your home. However, in the current downturn, and with people struggling to avoid repossessions, they may […]

4 Jun 2011
Brad Blackman

(PA)RK (H)ERE Oil on canvas, 5 x 7 inches © 2011 Brad Blackman It’s been a while since I’ve come across a new artist using Ghostsigns as a springboard for their own work. Today, one came into my inbox, this time from Brad Blackman in ‘music city’, Nashville, USA. It is part of a series […]

24 Jan 2011
Street Art

sarflondondunc, ever alert to the gradual shifts in our Ghostsigns landscape, alerted me to this new piece of street art positioned on the great Boyd Pianos sign on Shacklewell Lane, Hackney. It’s by the Canadian artist Specter and is part of the ‘If I saw you in heaven’ project. This attempts to “address the issue of […]

11 Aug 2010
Anchor

Photo: Creative Review Photo: Creative Review Creative Review and a few others have spotted this new outdoor campaign for Anchor Butter. When I first saw the photos I assumed they were genuine hand painted ads but they are actually printed billboards which, in the case of the press shots, are cleverly cropped to suggest otherwise. […]

5 Aug 2010
Annette Smith

On the back of my post about the interview in Bath for BBC Radio 4’s Making History program I have been contacted by Bath artist and photographer Annette Smith. By pure coincidence she currently has an exhibition running until this weekend at the Octagon in Bath as part of the ‘Fringe Arts Bath’ festival. She […]

9 Jun 2010
Martin Wilson

Fascinating work from Martin Wilson discovered in Ultrabold (see previous pieces on ghostsigns here and here). Ultrabold is the quarterly journal of the St Bride Library which is just off Fleet Street. I discovered the library a couple of years ago and it really is one of London’s hidden treasures, especially for those interested in […]

4 Feb 2010
Stuart Free Interview

The Independent on Sunday have an interview with Stuart Free, the artist who created this painting of the Donovan Bros sign in Spitalfields before it was repainted. (My original post about Stuart has more commentary and he is also mentioned in the ‘Interpretations’ segment of my recent talk at Middlesex University.) Read the full interview […]

17 Jan 2010
Draft Chapter (Food & Drink)

I’d love to get your feedback on a draft chapter for a possible book to accompany the archive. If this gets published then it will help raise funds to support the ongoing work of the History of Advertising Trust in this area. As usual please leave comments below or get in touch. NB. The images […]

8 Jan 2010
Jo Tomkins

Earlier this year Jo Tomkins, then a student from Ravensbourne College, got in touch for some advice on her graphic design project focused on Stoke Newington ghostsigns. I tried to help out as much as I could and so I was really happy when she sent through the final output of the project, a folding […]

18 Nov 2009
Emmanuel Nouaillier Update

Just under a year ago I featured the work of Emmanuel Nouaillier whose artistic treatment of the ghostsigns in his native France is fascinating. It’s worth having a read of this site to understand some of the meticulous technique that goes into producing his work. Emmanuel describes the final print output as, “a mix between sculpture, […]

14 Nov 2009
Jack Daniels Update

Sheffield, Photo by Nicky Roberts My Aunt captured the above picture in Sheffield recently (Westfield Terrace, just off West Stand). This adds to the growing number of locations in this nationwide campaign by Jack Daniels (see previous posts). Photos of those discovered so far are below (Brighton, Bristol, Leicester & Newcastle), and, awaiting photographic evidence, […]

29 Apr 2009
Emmanuel Nouaillier

One of the best things that has happened since setting up this blog is people sending me ghost sign related materials from around the world. The most interesting of these are when the signs have been used as a springboard for artistic and other creative activities. Most recently I got a series of emails from […]

8 Dec 2008
Stuart Free

For my birthday earlier this week my girlfriend bought me a limited edition print from north London artist Stuart Free. It is a painting depicting the distinctive Donovan Bros. shopfront in Spitalfields which has always been one of my favourite sites in London. [Update here.] Stuart clearly produced this painting before the sign was recently […]

11 Sep 2008
Bile Beans Part 2

Although I’ve been aware of this Bile Beans sign for some time I was struck by Andy Johnson‘s picture seen here as it really highlights the brightness of the sign versus the surrounding area.It has been tinkered with slightly but provides an insight into how much the original signs must have stood out against an […]

30 May 2008
Jack Daniel’s (Brighton)

Following my uncle’s discoveries in Newcastle I spotted two more Jack Daniel’s faux Ghost Signs on my Bank holiday visit to Brighton. The one on the white background is right there as soon as you come out of the station and the one on the red background is on the road that goes to Hove. […]

25 Mar 2008
Its All Art

‘Goods in the City’ by Keith J. Hampton Keith Hampton over at It’s All Art kindly sent me this example of some work he has produced inspired by the ghost signs found in Indianapolis, USA. When I first saw this one (there’s another called ‘Miami Alley’) I assumed it was a collage, either digital or […]

9 Mar 2008
Jerry Johnson

© Sign painted and photo taken by Jerry Johnson Frank Jump over in NYC has just posted a collection of ten outstanding images from the work of experience signwriter (or “wall dog” in USA) Jerry Johnson. Some of these are genuine pieces of advertising and some, like the one pictured, are spoofs. The craftsmanship, or […]

23 Feb 2008
Jack Daniel’s

Some time ago now my uncle sent me two photos he took while visiting Newcastle (see below). These show Jack Daniel’s reviving the hand painted advertising medium by using a stencil to replicate the label design on walls across the city. Comparing the two signs reveals that they are stencilled, most probably they did a […]

18 Jan 2008
Shop Local

Not all Brickads are Ghost Signs and the most recent examples I know of are from artist Bob and Roberta Smith as part of his ‘Shop Local’ campaign at Peer Gallery. This involved bringing together artists and sign writers to recreate the old style of advertising on behalf of local Hoxton businesses. This photo is […]

18 Jun 2007