concert

Concert posters have been around since the early days of the music scene. Every new music movement has brought new art and printing techniques, resulting in a vast and varied history of concert posters. From the simple style of early boxing posters to the psychedelic imagery of the 1970s, these posters are works of art becoming increasingly valuable to collectors as music memorabilia.

Here’s a brief look at the evolution of rock music and its paraphernalia beginning in the 70s.

In the Early 70s, Commercial Rock Started It All

When the Fillmore closed in 1971, artist David Singer was tasked with creating its final poster. The piece was more subdued than something extravagant. This didn't initially please Bill Graham. However, the piece is now considered a classic, ushering in a new style of posters.

Singer's art style used collages and thin lettering. A new era of music and concert posters began, with rock music becoming more monetised. Shows were advertised more through mass media, but the art form persisted.

Poster art became popular again in the mid-1970s with the rise of new wave and punk music. As with early concert posters, posters advertising punk shows were often posted on streets throughout various neighbourhoods. The art style for these pieces reflected the music they were advertising. The music was far different from the mainstream, and so was the artwork.

Punk posters were characterised by their DIY aesthetic, often featuring crude, hand-drawn artwork and anti-establishment messages. They were meant to shock and provoke, and they did just that. The punk movement was about individuality and rejecting the status quo, and punk poster art perfectly captured that spirit.

On the other side of the pond, San Francisco was home to many punk and new wave bands and, as such, had many resident artists who created posters and flyers for their shows. John Seabury, who did the art for the band Psychotic Pineapple, was one of these artists. His work was some of the more artistic pieces of the era.

Pineapple Man was a character created by an artist in the San Francisco scene who was known for creating excellent poster art. This character appeared in the band's artwork and was one of the most iconic fictional characters of the time. While the band was shortlived (performing only from 1979–1980), any surviving poster with the Pyno Man must be considered punk music memorabilia.

In the 80s, Poster-Making Went the Modern Route

In the 1980s, Frank Kozik's silkscreen prints became popular, making screen printing the most popular form of poster. Kozik is credited with reviving concert posters as an art form. He started in Austin, Texas, creating black and white posters for the underground scene. He went on to design for bands like Nirvana and Pearl Jam. 

By the 90s, Retro and Modern Collided

In the 1990s, artists like Chuck Sperry, Emek, and Jeff Wood began to dominate the poster scene. These artists generally use the psychedelic style of the ’60s while adding their modern flair. The Grateful Dead popularised this art style, and their fans are some of the most avid collectors of this type of work.

In Closing

While concert posters of the 80s and 90s stood out for their visual flair and unique lettering, it all began from the wild experimentation set in the 70s, where the roots of music memorabilia have been planted and continue to shape future generations dedicated to the art form of the concert poster.

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