I've always loved Sign Painting. So when I heard that Design Objective would be hosting a viewing of "Sign Painters," a film on sign painting, I knew I had to be there. The event was held at Grundlos Kollektiv which is a new creative space on Cipriani Boulevard, and was well attended.
There were 2 movies that preceded the main film of the night, the first was "Why Man Creates" by Saul Bass, a short-film on just that – why man creates. The second film was "Farewell, Etaoin Shrdlu," a documentary on the last day of the use of a hot metal press in the New York Times. Both these films were quite interesting but I did prefer "Farewell, Etaoin Shrdlu" as it documented a time in graphic design that is completely different to the digital age that modern designers now live in.
The movie about to begin!
The film was especially inspiring, and definitely shed a light on the art of hand-painting signs. In a time where vinyl signs are relatively cheap and easy to produce, it must be appreciated how special a hand-painted advertisement can be. Hopefully we can see more hand made design examples in Trinidad.
One of my favourite parts of the evening was walking into the venue and seeing that Design Objective got Bruce Cayonne (the guy who paints most of the fete signs in Trinidad) to paint a sign for the event. Bruce was in attendance to watch the film along with his son (and some more example of his fete signs.)
Some of the fete signs on display inside the venue.
I've been documenting hand painted typography examples in Trinidad on my Blog "Type of Trinidad" for the last 5 years, and Bruce's work is often the subject. One of his signs has even found a home in my living room and I have previously written about fete signs on this blog.
All in all, it was a good night and I am looking forward to the next DO event!
Here are some more photos from the event –
