Discussing Your Opinion Could Win You 4 posters!

So here's the deal for all of our Facebook Fans (are you a fan yet?): Help us decide what band to work with next, and if your choice comes true, you get goodies...not just any goodies:

For our fans, if we end up working with the band, YOU get 4 posters of your choice from our current stock for $25. That's roughly worth $100+ buckaroos!

So, get to discussing....

GET A CLUE DESIGN STUDIO'S FACEBOOK PAGE

Then simply click the "Discussions" tab at the top and get to yackin' about it!

Pick up some affordable poster love!

Check out the classified ads we presently have up at the world famous Gigposters.com and own yourself some affordable art! Let's show that economy who's boss...

Prices from 10 bucks (10 bucks?!) to $25.
From Wilco to The Big Lebowski!

We'll be adding more soon...

New poster design for Fivehead Entertainment Summer Concert Series!

Here's some images of our latest poster design for a local Summer concert series right here in our hometown. Five Head Entertainment & Hickory Community Theater are hosting this great series of very talented bands and singer-songwriters at the Fireman's Kitchen, a very cozy venue inside the theater.

This two color screen print was done on French White Wash 100# paper stock, edition of 90 signed and numbered. Nick at The Half and Half once again does an amazing job with the inks. The orange ink overlays the blue with pretty cool results (detail shots below).

Five head Entertainment is really striving to bring some great music to Hickory, so please support this series if you can! Only $8 in advance or $25 for a season pass that gets you in to all four shows.
More info @ www.fiveheadentertainment.com

See the poster at Gigposters.com!

New Wilco poster design "Mr. Cactus"!

We just finished this poster for Wilco's performance in Tucson, Arizona. It features Mr. Cactus, a trouble making character who enjoys lighting up a couple sparklers in the hot Arizona sun, he's crazy like that.

Inspired in part by a news article mentioning how Arizona was very close to passing legislation that would legalize sparklers...too funny to pass that up.

Four color print (spot white in the sun and sparklers) on French White Wash 110# by Luckbunny.

This was a really fun one to work on (although the deadline was a bit prickly), always nice to get out the pencils and pens! Here's some photos of the process...


See it on the world-renowned Gigposters.com:
www.gigposters.com

Band of Horses poster design.

We recently designed a gig poster for the very talented Band of Horses. The poster supports their amazing Charlotte show at the Neighborhood Theater on June 17th. If you have yet to see them live, please add that to your "To-Do" list.

The idea for the main visual came from the importance of really listening to their music, not allowing this sometimes very fast paced life to neglect us from really listening...REALLY.
The ear image is from an old symbol book from 1973, the background and texture was created with rubylith and a dirty scanner.

Signed and numbered edition of 100. Three colors on French Grout Grey Speckletone, made magically delicious by the Half and Half.

Available now for a limited time!
The Best $18 You Ever Spent.

Get a Clue Design Helps Wilco Promote Band's First Film

We were thrilled to get the honor of helping Wilco promote their new film "Ashes of American Flags", which as the band's website puts it: "Ashes of American Flags is a new film presenting Wilco live in concert during their 2008 tour. Culled from concerts in five quintessentially American venues, the film captures the energy, poignancy and musicality of a Wilco concert and tour."

Get a Clue Design Studio helped in the form of six different posters to be used at film festival openings and as general promotion. The six larger sizes were also used in movie theater light boxes. Each poster features a different band member and can be seen here for the first time, unless you were fortunate enough to be at one of the earlier movie screenings. All designs were printed in New York City on a traditional 4 color press. Larger versions below:

Wilco HQ just reported that Ashes of American Flags is the #1 DVD on the Billboard Music DVD chart (by a long shot). Pretty sweet.

In addition to the posters, we also got to help design a new tote bag for the film. Made from all natural cotton canvas, the tote features the Ashes logo. This updated version is made thicker and more durable; straps extended for added shoulder comfort. Perfect for carrying vinyl, books, groceries, children, etc.

To purchase the film, tote and other yummy items (like a vinyl Wilco toy made by UNKL), please visit the band's store site here:
http://wilcoworld.net/store.html
Visit the film's website here:
http://ashesofamericanmovie.com/

"I would like to salute the ashes of American flags, and all the falling leaves filling up shopping bags." - Jeff Tweedy

ASU Design Students Visit the Get a Clue Design Studio!

A little while ago, we had the privilege of having the design students from the Appalachian State University Advertising program in Hickory visit our studio.

A very eclectic and talented group of folks, each with unique goals and areas of interest within the creative professional trades. Many good questions were asked about the business of art/design/print and how we do what the heck it is we do. We hope the answers were helpful...if not, hey, it was a free tour, plus we handed out free buttons and stickers, c'mon! We really enjoyed the visit and wish them all the very best!

Here's the student group photo(talented instructor Laura Brittain took the photo).

The group's blog can be found here: www.freshbrainsdaily.blogspot.com



















Here's me, trying to say something witty, smart and helpful...hopefully I got at least one out of three. (Editor's note: Notice the phone in my hand; yep, self employed, ya get to play secretary too. Also, in the group photo, there's an essential ingredient in doing freelance sitting on the steps: COFFEE.)

Hey, Look! A Sneak Peek at Our Record Store Day Print...

Here is our poster in support of Record Store Day on April 18th. We created this for the poster show "Lyrically Speaking", a show organized by Chuck Keppler and Leia Bell. Happy to be a part of this neat event!

It's a pretty cool idea: let artists interpret song lyrics however they wish to! We opted to let The Beatles classic song "A Day In The Life" inspire us...There's a couple "hidden" items, such as the actual newspaper photo of the car wreck that killed Tara Browne, once a close friend of John Lennon and Paul McCartney. As the story goes, Lennon was reading The Daily Mail newspaper, scanning news articles as the two of them created the now infamous song.

So, sometimes common things like the day's newspaper, getting the groceries, etc, can in small and at times big ways change your life, in ways you may not expect.

The show will be opening at Signed & Numbered/Slowtrain Records in Salt Lake City, Size Records in Oklahoma City AND 52.5 Records in Charleston, SC.

The 9" x 12" three color poster (black, tan and white ink) was masterfully printed on French Speckletone Old Green stock by the great folks at The Half and Half. Available for purchase soon! Signed and numbered edition of 100.

Go buy the poster... and a vinyl record while you're at it...
http://www.recordstoreday.com

Detail of design and print below:

We're on Facebook, pflibbity-pfoo.

For all you Facebookers (you know who you are), here's the link to our new company profile on Facebook:

Get a Clue Design Studio on Facebook

Become a Fan, you'll get updates and maybe even more friends...not that you need any, just look at that list!
Come on by and visit, we'll be posting new work and posters and what not, many for sale...

Hardest button to button.

Since we have over 45 new button designs to show you, we're going to show more than just one each post, because you have better things to do, right?

So, here's a few of the new ones photographed together as one big happy button family. And again, these will be available for purchase soon, or if you buy one of our limited edition posters we normally throw in a couple for FREE.

Posters can be viewed here: http://www.gigposters.com


Mo' buttons, mo' buttons to come...

Say hello to one of 50 buttons.

We recently created a bunch of 1" buttons that were just delivered to us & we're stupid happy about it (500 total produced).

These are used as promotional items for Get a Clue Design Studio and also as nice little freebies thrown in the poster tubes when good folks purchase our work (hint, hint). We thought it'd be fun to eventually show all 50 buttons we recently designed and had produced by the good folks at Blue Collar Press. These guys did a great job with the art provided. The acetate and high definition specialty finishes they can apply to buttons is amazing.

It was also a good challenge to create and design something fun within a ONE inch space.
We will sell $5 bags of 3 random ones for those interested. Ad forthcoming, for now feel free to email us to order: matt@getacluedesign.com

So, without further adieu, here's #1 out of 50 designs.

Logoville.

A little change of pace: Here's a new logo we just finished creating for a new woodworking company called Appalachia Woodcraft. They will be producing fine outdoor furniture in the Adirondack tradition. The earth tone colors worked well in relation to the product and communicating the idea of what is involved in the producing of these beautiful pieces (trees, wood, etc).
Since some amazing craftsmanship is involved, we wanted the mark to have a hand done, slightly rough feel (see detail).





We tried unsuccessfully to fight the urge to feature the Blue Ridge Mountains somehow, seemed very fitting for the feel we were after (and the company's name sake, duh). The company will eventually have a web site where you can custom order your chair, table, etc. All hand made. More info soon.

New Poster design for Yonder Mountain String Band

We just finished designing & printing this tall boy for the guys that make up Yonder Mountain String Band out of Colorado. The poster supports their likely sold out show at the Tabernacle in Atlanta Next month. Although mainly known for their great live performances, their latest album has received some really good buzz and sees the guys expanding their sound.

Here's one editorial review: "With the chiming opening strains of "Sidewalk Stars" and the propulsion that follows evoking memories of vintage U2, it's plain that Yonder Mountain is up to something a little different with its label debut. Dave Johnston's banjo still drives the music, but the material (with the majority of the cuts under four minutes) depends more on hooks, harmonies, and tight arrangements than instrumental virtuosity. Some of the results suggest a similar spirit to the adventurousness of bluegrass prodigies Nickel Creek, though "How 'Bout You" could pass for an outtake from alt-country avatars Uncle Tupelo. --Don McLeese

Here's some detail shots of the poster. Three color, red overprints. Poster size is 8.5" x 24". Many thanks go once again to Nick @ The Half and Half for the squeegee expertise.

Check them out here:
http://www.thehalfandhalf.com/

And, as always, visit the poster at the entertaining gigposters.com

"EEEEEEEE!" New skate deck featured!

A screamin' new skate deck is now available in our Board Pusher store! The good folks at Boardpusher were cool enough to add our deck among the main page's featured decks, thanks guys.

See it and 22 other decks available here: www.boardpusher.com/getacluedesign

We created this design based on an obscure comic from our vault of goodies. We really love old comic style art, with its clearly missed color registration that we think adds to the visual interest and the attractiveness, especially in a world obsessed with visual "perfection".

Enjoy the imperfection of print, and be sure to watch out for those lions!

Wilco poster design "Catching the Copper" details

We just finished a new Wilco poster design to support their two dates in Alaska.
This Grizzly is about to be fed some fresh, delicious Wilco. From what we've read online, the concerts were great, despite not-so-great weather in both Fairbanks and Anchorage.
We should have some for sale soon...
You can find it here on Gigposters.com.

Six colors, printed by D&L.
Rock on with your bad Grizzly self.

Details of the drawing and inking below: