Photography, InDesign, Illustrator
5”x5”
This project is so special to me, and I’m so excited to finally share it! This is a 5”x5” pocket book that highlights the incredible hand painted signs of San Francisco’s Mission District.
I created this book in response to the prompt: create an experimental typographic project. I decided I wanted to create a book that explored my favorite neighborhood in the city. In the Mission I am constantly amazed by the amount of color and interesting signage, especially by the intricate and detailed handpainted signs (or rótulos).
I began researching more about these kinds of signs, and learned so much about their rich history. I love how these practical artforms get to influence the surrounding area, and bring color and life to the neighborhood. It seemed to me that after researching a bit, many were worried that these signs, along with their story, were beginning to disappear. What I witnessed though was a different. As I walked through the Mission to gather my images for this project I witnessed new signs being painted, a good indication that these artforms are here to stay. I was so happy to learn that there are still people committed to keeping these signs and style of art alive.
This book went through so many different iterations, and was a long process to get to a place that I felt both honored and demonstrated the artforms, while still retaining my personal style. Ultimately, I am super happy with how this came out, and I thoroughly enjoyed the process of designing and producing it.