"One Shot at Glory: The Art of the Sign Painter"

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"The Sun and The Moon,"

Japhy Witte, "The Sun and The Moon," enamel show card, 2 panel 4' x3'.

SMASH Gallery of Modern Art is thrilled to bring together some of the West Coast’s master craftsmen and artists for One Shot at Glory: The Art of The Sign Painter, opening at the Gallery on May 31st, 2013.

SMASH Gallery of Modern Art is presenting this exhibition in association with the Canadian premiere of the documentary film “The Sign Painter Movie” by Faythe Levine and Sam Macon, sponsored by Lotus Events

The show is a celebration of tradition and an exploration of a time honoured art. We’ve brought together 8 artists, working in the same field, each with a unique style.

Seattle’s Japhy Witte’s Show Card pieces hearken back to the days of the soda counter and county fairs. Ernie Gosnell, originally from Atlanta Georgia, left home for New Orleans at the age of 13 and joined the circus where he learned his craft painting circus banners for the sideshow. For Vancouver Artist John Lennig, from the moment he painted his first lines at the age of 18, he was hooked on the craft and for 50 years has made his living in Vancouver with brush in hand.

As recently as 1980, hand lettered signage was the way to create a unique advertising for a company, from window lettering to huge hand painted ads adorning the side of buildings, even Vancouver has a rich history of Ghost signs all over the city. With the advent of dye cut and vinyl lettering and access to quick and cheap banner printing, the Art of the hand painted sign has been replaced with the homogenous three-colour banner and LED screen. But like all cool things, there are a few great creatives maintaining the practice handed down from Artist to Artist and a new generation taking up the practice with gusto.

Opening Friday, May 31st, 2013 8PM at SMASH Gallery of Modern Art, Show runs until June 29th, 2013.

Special Event: Saturday June 8th, 11am to 7PM.

Meet the Artists, see them work and join us for a book signing of The Sign Painter Book with Sam Macon and Faythe Levine, the creators of The Sign Painter Project.

One Shot at Glory: The Art of the Sign Painter

On Saturday, June 8th, SMASH will host a very special event with the Artists and the Film Makers together at the gallery. There will be demonstrations of sign painting, pin striping and an opportunity to meet the creators of the Sign Painter Project, authors and filmmakers Sam Macon and Faythe Levine.

We also have a very special raffle going on! Entrants have a 1 in 300 chance to win a brand new Vespa S50, custom painted by Vancouver Artist John Lennig. Proceeds from the raffle benefit ArtStarts.