Have you seen Just Like Being There? If you like live music, we think you should. It’s an incredible film that premiered at SXSW in 2012 that gave us a new appreciation for the artists and artwork behind some of the most iconic gig posters around.
It’s one of the reasons why we were so excited to hear from John Fosco. John, the president of Miami-based VFD marketing, is a die-hard music lover with a collection of over forty gig posters to prove it. “My life is my work,” John says, “but the one hobby I’ve been able to hang on to is music.” Over the past ten years, John has traveled extensively to see his favorite bands, their gig posters his souvenir of choice. When he called Simply Framed, the posters were rolled up in their original cardboard tubes, while the walls of his South Beach condo sat empty.
We were beyond excited to help him rectify this situation with some custom framing.
John with his new gig poster gallery wall (and his dachshund, Bambino). From left: A poster from the Arctic Monkey's first show in Madison Square Garden, designed by Todd Slater; a Gary Clark, Jr. gig poster, signed by the musician; a Rage Against the Machine poster designed by Winston Smith; posters from two of Jack White's shows at Miami's Fillmore in 2014, designed by The Silent Giants; 2012 Made in America Festival poster by Brad Klausen and Barry Ament; 2012 Outside Lands poster by Rob Jones; a Pearl Jam poster from 2014's Austin City Limits Festival; 2009's Outside Lands poster by the Ames Brothers.
John’s collection includes work by some of the most esteemed designers in the business—The Silent Giants, Todd Slater, Ken Taylor, the Ames Bros—the list goes on. Because they encompass several print styles—screen prints, letterpress, foil-pressed—he chose to float them over an acid-free 4-ply white mat, a way of highlighting the detail of the printing techniques.
From left: A limited edition foil-pressed poster from a 2010 Spoon show in Richmond, VA; a 2013 Outside Lands poster (bottom) and another Arctic Monkeys design (top); a limited edition poster from the Arctic Monkeys' 2009 show in Melbourne, Australia, designed by Ken Taylor.
Our personal favorite? A rare poster from Jay Z’s first Made in America Festival in 2012 (below). The piece is split in two: one half is the design of Brad Klausen, the other by Barry Ament of the Ames Brothers. Side-by-side, the two designs make up a trippy, dollar-bill inspired tribute to 2012's Philadelphia show.
Interested in having your poster collection custom framed? We’d love to help. Email us at hello@simplyframed.com for a consultation.
