OK so I was at Bumbershoot in Seattle all weekend and it would be an understatement to say that it was amazing. I went with the idea that it was a music festival. I mean I had spent some time on the Bumber site building my online schedule and all that jazz, but that far from prepared me for the spectacle that was in fact Bumbershoot 2008.
I’m not even going to talk about the music, I’m not going to say I was happy to see STP rock out their old stuff, I’m not even going to tell you it was entertaining to see Neko Case destroy the sunny afternoon set, or that I was blown away by the energy of Monotonix and their 12minute set. I’m not going to go on and on about the music I was introduced to such as Barcelona, John Vanderslice, Sons and Daughters, The Shackeltons, and !!!. Don’t get me wrong the music was outstanding, The Weakerthans Killed it, and Beck probably topped my list but I am not interested in talking about the music. Not now anyways.
Bumbershoot was about the design.
It was about the cross cultural collaboration of Tehran designers and Seattle designers. A selection of 25 posters from each city sharing cultural themes such as music, film, theatre and contemporary art, The Seattle-Tehran Poster Show showcased some of Iran’s top graphic artists’ none of whom have exhibited in the U.S. before. The type application and imagery integration was beautiful. Artists range from Tehran University Professor Reza Abedini to younger talents born since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, such as the female design duo Soha Shirvani and Reyhaneh Sheikhbahaei. These Iranian designers’ posters are paired with the work of Seattle designers Robynne Raye of Modern Dog, Coby Schultz and Barry Ament of the Ames Bros and many more. Check out the site here – http://www.seattletehran.com/
I came home with a limited edition print that was a collaborated piece by two designers, one from each side of the lake.
Then there was the FLATSTOCK poster show. Holy crap was this one amazing series presented by the American Poster Institute (API). It is an ongoing series of exhibitions featuring the work of many of the most popular concert poster artists working today. This was had the energy of the entire festival in one room – that was the way it was for me. The rows between the display booths was at times more packed then the food vendors outside. I found myself in the show numerous times going over the incredible work by outstanding artists and designers.
The craftsmanship was second to none and you could see the care and passion for music expressed in designs. I started by buying a Tube – that is what you do to start a collection of great posters – you buy a frickin card board tube. I left the show Monday night with 4 posters that will soon find a home on the walls of my Studio. A new collection kicked off – Seattle style. I will post the images of my collection once I get them on the walls – right now they are snug in their tube.
When I went to Bumbershoot I wasn’t expecting to see “Art” at the Art and Music festival known as Bumbershoot, I don’t know what I was expecting really….
Check out this video on the process
Processhaus 