‘Performance’ artist: Gary Houston’s posters document Northwest music scene

Poster art, like album cover art and T-shirt art, has been part of the iconography of American music since the 1960s – that decade of so many great, misguided and/or lost causes – when music really started to make a statement. You can trace some of the evolutionary branches of rock and roll through its graphics: The “Sergeant Pepper” and “Magical Mystery Tour” covers; the Grateful Dead’s various skeletons; the Ramones’ American eagle; the Boss’ leather-jacketed back on “Bruce Springsteen’s Greatest Hits,” electric guitar rakishly slung upside down – and Weird Al Yankovic’s parody of the same image, with an accordion instead of Telecaster … Whatever the era, whatever the music, the art embodied and immortalized it long after the bands left the stage.

If you love poster art – but art that’s not so mass-produced that it’s as ubiquitous as Mick Jagger’s lips at a Rolling Stones concert – check out Portland, Ore.–based master silkscreen printer Gary Houston at VoodooCatBox.

I first saw a sampling of Gary’s work on a wall of Powell’s Books in Portland four or five years ago. I was and continue to be blown away: Some of Gary’s hand-printed posters for musicians’ tours and performances at local venues are a nod to classic concert posters (think Rick Griffin’s “Flying Eyeball” for Jimi Hendrix and John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers or any of the Fillmore East concert posters), but he has his own vision, his own style, and I think you’ll like it as much as I do – not just for the artwork but for his sense of time and place.

You see, Gary is a chronicler of musical events through the prism of the Portland music scene – not everyone who blows through town, of course, but music is a matter of taste. Certainly, he features lots of Northwest groups, like Alice in Chains, Death Cab for Cutie and Foo Fighters, alongside legends like B.B. King, Joan Baez, Jorma Kaukonen, Patti Smith, David Byrne, Steve Miller Band and Elvis Costello. Your biggest dilemma will be which prints to choose. They are really reasonably priced – generally around $30 each – but don’t dawdle: These knockouts are produced in limited runs (in editions of as few as 80 signed, numbered copies), and they SELL OUT!

(I need not point out that they make GREAT gifts … for yourself or the music lovers on your holiday shopping list.)

I recently interviewed Gary about his posters. You can see some of his work – along with that of dozens of other sensational artists – on display in “The Art of Musical Maintenance VI” through Jan. 25, 2010, at The Goodfoot Pub & Lounge (www.thegoodfoot.com), 2845 SE Stark, Portland, OR 97214, (503) 239-9292.

AmeriCollector: What’s your art background?

Gary Houston: I studied art at Wichita State University, Kansas, and Bethany College in Linsborg, Kansas. My formal background is more in drawing, sculpture and art history.

AC: How long have you been doing music posters?

Gary: Since 1994 or ’95. I was going through a divorce, and it was a good way to work out my angst and my frustration: It was a way of being constructive instead of being self-destructive. I also did posters back in high school and college, but not to the degree of the present. I do like the freedom that doing posters affords.

AC: Are you asked to do them by the musician or by the venue?

Gary: A lot of times we do posters for the venues, and sometimes we do touring stuff for the bands. A lot of times I do stuff because I want to: I’m not getting paid for it. I do it because I’m a music junkie: I’m a big fan of people who do really quality work, music-wise. I always think we do the “Americana of music”: I do a lot of blues/R&B/twang, with a little punk stuff. Obviously I do some things that harken back to the psychedelic era.

AC: Do you get to do what you want, or are you pretty much told what to do?

Gary: It depends on the band. For example, Los Lobos lets us do anything we want to do. Some bands micromanage, and that sucks the fun out of it.

AC: What is the printing process?

Gary: They’re silkscreen prints. I screen-print everything, I hand-pull everything. I don’t know how many colors there will be until something’s on the light table. It’s always a surprise, and I enjoy making changes, but it’s kind of addictive: I try not to be obsessive about it.

AC: Do you have help?

Gary: Someone does the computer work for me: the film, the typography and the scanning. Her name is Hailey and she’s very good at the digital stuff, and easy to work with.

AC: How many posters are in each edition?

Gary: Most of my editions are anywhere from 100 to well past 1,000 (for tours).

AC: Do you sign and/or number them?

Gary: I sign and number my stuff. There are times when I do an overrun and they don’t get numbered, but they’re all signed.

AC: Do you ever exhibit your work?

Gary: I’ve exhibited in flatstock shows in Austin, Texas, in Seattle and in Germany, and I’m currently in “The Art of Musical Maintenance VI” at The Goodfoot Pub & Lounge in Portland with around 50 other poster artists. It’s a spectacular show and will be up through Jan. 25. I’ve also had shows here in Portland and in Kentucky and California.

Many thanks to Gary Houston of www.voodoocatbox.com for giving us this great interview.

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