I’m being hit from all sides this past week regarding information on my DRIVE poster. Most of the emails, tweets and Facebook notes are asking the same questions so an official update on the blog is in order to get the information out there on all fronts. So, here’s how things will be going down.

The DRIVE posters are currently being set up over at Bounty Print in Halifax on their giant 6-colour Heidleberg press. They will be printed at 22″ x 28″ on Starbrite Velvet 80lb cover. Additionally, There will be a very small run of 24″ x 36″ oversized DRIVE posters available on semi-gloss poster stock. If you are looking at getting one of these ones on launch day I urge you to act fast as the numbers will be very low.

Here are the summarized details:

DRIVE poster launch: January 19, 2012. 1pm EST in the Signalnoise Store.
22″ x 28″ posters, edition of 300: $50.00 + shipping
24″ x 36″ posters, edition of 30: $90.00 + shipping

The Signalnoise Store will be activated on launch day to purchase the DRIVE posters. The absolute best way to get a head start is to follow my Twitter, as I will be posting the news as soon as they are available. To dispel any rumours, there is no lottery and the DRIVE posters will be available first come, first served. Mark your calendars.

If you have any questions, I urge you to ask via the comments on this post and I will update with any details needed. A huge thanks for all the interest in this design, everyone. This is the largest Signalnoise poster launch to date and the response so far has been amazing.

Film on Paper presents … the movie poster for PALE RIDER.

Director: Clint Eastwood
Genre(s) of Film: Western
Origin of Poster: International
Year of Poster: 1985
Designer: Bill Gold
Artist: David Grove

Signalnoise in association with Film on Paper brings you Movie Poster Monday. We will be showcasing a movie poster to start every week, so be sure to check out future posts for some great art from cinema’s past.

I had an evening to myself recently and while I was puttering around the home office I started to look through some of my archives of past work, specifically the Signalnoise work I created in 2008. Lots of shard assets, wild colours and lens flares … certainly a rough blueprint of what would come from Signalnoise. It was a great time of personal experimentation, working in an area I was really familiar with. The excitement of forging new territory for myself, and building a body of work quickly with enthusiasm.

I was working at a small design company in Halifax at the time and Signalnoise as an entity was nothing more than my blog, really. I had no freelance clients, and used my free time 100% on my own work. So many late nights by myself in front of the computer, listening to music and creating stuff. I started remembering who I was back then. What my goals were. What my motivation was. I just wanted to create for myself, and to have fun doing it.

Yesterday I opened up some of my old art asset files and decided to make a piece in the style of 4 years ago. A lot of my pieces from back then incorporated the word VARO into the design, something of an imaginary broadcasting company I used to create the posters for.

You’ll hear people in the industry say “Never look back, only look to the future” which is something I’ve never agreed with. Once a year I look back at old drawings and designs with great affection. It’s a roadmap of where I’ve been, which helps me understand where I am and where I’m potentially going. The successes and the failures all taught me something along the way. I wouldn’t trade that for the world.

It was fun to revisit this style. Haven’t done so in years. Very nostalgic. Kind of emotional.

I did some link-chasing last night and ended up on the website of UK-based artist Ben Thomas through a post on OMG Posters. It was that top image that caught my eye with the nice purples and oranges, but it was the other work that struck me really hard. Such wonderful use of colour, greyscale, geometry, natural forms, texture and effects. He obviously has the digital chops, but it all looks so natural. Not forced or over-designed.

Beautiful stuff. Stopped me in my tracks for a while. Check out Ben’s website for more of this work, and drop by the store to see what’s for sale, and say hello on Twitter.

I’m a bit late on this one, or early if you consider the post I did on Toronto’s own Superbrothers 3 years ago (link). Last year they launched their first game for the iPhone and iPad, Sword & Sworcery. The game flew under my radar and was suggested to me via Twitter. After a few seconds the thing was being downloaded due to my being a fan of their work for some time now.

I’m not going to review the game or anything, but I will say that I’m absolutely loving it. The ’80s, Commodore 64-esque graphics really hit home for me, bringing me back to my childhood playing all those little adventure games for hours on end. Beautiful use of design, colour and effects, but the glue that holds everything together is the sound and music provided by Toronto’s Jim Guthrie.

I bought and downloaded Guthrie’s soundtrack, Sword & Sworcery EP: The Ballad of The Space Babies and have been playing it all day. In the process of downloading Guthrie’s newest album now, Children of the Clone. Both album covers seen above were designed by Superbrothers.

If you’re looking for a new game that’s awesome to look at, a wonderful adventure story, and is funny as all hell … I highly recommend Sword & Sworcery. Very immersive and wonderful atmosphere. Check out the Superbrothers website and say hello on Twitter. Also, here’s where you can find Jim Guthrie, and his Twitter as well.

First post of the year goes to 22-year old Andrey Danilov (Twitter) currently residing in Hangzhou, China. Andrey spent a bit of time during his holidays to put together these lovely images featuring my Signalnoise rainbow sun as a neon sign. All shined up complete with wires and galaxies. Man, the little sucker never looked better.

I can’t even tell you how much this warms my heart. I’ve been up to my neck in project planning over here, then this shows up out of the blue. Wasn’t asked for, just a little gift from the other side of the world.

Signalnoise salutes you, Andrey!

The time between Christmas and the New Year is something I like to call the vacuum. It’s really the only time of year when phone calls are sparse, email calms down a bit and the amount of responsibility tends to be a bit lower. A lot of people have vacation around this time that spans the week. Not all, I realize.

Since my parents live only an hour away, I go home for the annual White Christmas and hang out there for a few days before heading back, leaving me with around 4 days to do what I want. The vacuum. I started using this little time period a few years ago to relax a bit, think about some new projects, anticipate the new year and tinker around with some fun little designs I’ve wanted to do for a while. I stay up late, listen to music, and fire around some graphics.

This year is a bit different. I spent the last 2 days breaking in my new iPad which I’ve lovingly named Yeti. I want my iPad to solve problems in my workflow and general communication, so I’ve been using it to do research on creative flow, idea generating, brand focus and all kinds of nuts and bolts stuff. Reading Seth Godin’s Blog has been a huge help. In short, lots of note-taking.

I found it difficult during 2011 to keep up with everything. My email inbox is a damn mess and has been for months, resulting in missed opportunities and delays which I’m not happy about. Huge problem. Recognizing that weakness, I’m focusing most of my energy on a remedy or rhythm. Something that will use my time better

Welcome to the vacuum, everyone. Hope your holidays have been going well.

As of tomorrow I’ll be getting on the road to head to the parents place for the White Family Christmas celebration. Updates to the blog will be slow over the next week as I’m away, but I’ll still be on Twitter from time to time.

To all my friends, clients, new pals, arch-enemies, colleagues, agents and all in between  … wishing everyone a safe and happy holiday as we bring 2011 to a close. Have fun!