Showing posts with label Old Graphic Design. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Old Graphic Design. Show all posts

Friday, October 9, 2009

Queen City Printing Ink

 Advertisement [1896].
More info here.
Source.

The Queen City Printing Ink Co., founded by George DeGolyer & John Rychen in 1860, was at one time considered to be "the largest printing ink facility in the United States" (source). Housed at 600 W. 5th Street (map), with additional facilities on Court Street and extensive production on South Street (map), the products were of high quality, wide range, mass volume, and great demand:

 
Source.

• Additional info here & here.

• More QCPI Co. images: Poster [1903] & Trade Card [undated].
Related Post
The Sunday Paper

Friday, July 24, 2009

The Friendly Folks at Kroger

Ad in The Blade, Toledo, Ohio (6/23/1968).
Source.

Monday, June 22, 2009

Charley Harper Revisited

Just a quick note on some Harper artwork that has resurfaced...

Ford Times Magazine, Charley Harper.
 One of the many originals found in Ford's Archives.


The Ford Motor Company commissioned work from Charley between the 1940s-1960s, and a new trove of more than 50 originals from their private Corporate Art Collection has been released to the public.

Personally, I'm a huge of a fan of his commercial work (industrial themes), but this newly-found compendium also includes many from his bird and fish series - some never seen before by the masses. Visit the original sources of this news below...


• All credit for this news find goes to the fantastic source for vintage/retro design,
Grain Edit.


• Squidoo also has a fantastic writeup on this find, with several thumbs to preview from the collection.

• Visit the new blog,
News for the Harper Art Studio, for more info on Charley's work, or the Charley Harper Art Studio (specifically, their Ford Times spread) for more on this subject.


• Lastly,
Charley Harper Prints has a wide collection to view, and detailed backgound info on the Ford Times work that shouldn't be missed.

 
• • • • • • • • • •

"Cardinals Consorting" over Cincinnati Riverfront, Ford Times (cover) [1976].
More info on this particular work at Charlie Harper Prints.

Related Posts
Art Academy of Old
In Memoriam

Monday, June 1, 2009

Oh, I Believe in Yesterday...

In reference to the recent post, The City to Scale: Unbuilt Cincinnati, there was a comment/request to see a before-and-after presentation of the works that were discussed. This is a great idea, but I just don't have time for the extensive legwork involved - though fortunately, others have tackled this feat with amazing success...

Example 1

A post last year by Kevin Kidney at Dinosaurs and Robots show a great mashup of different eras:


Ghosts of Mt. Washington.
Click on the image to read the post, or
click here to view larger.

When I first glanced at the heading I thought he was somehow speaking of Anderson's neighbor, but not. Still, it's a great presentation, and one that I would try and duplicate if I were spending the time on this "before and after" concept.

Example 2

Check out author Robin Smith's & photographer Randall Lee Scheiber's: Ohio: Then and Now (2006). It has a great range of images from all over Ohio, and shows the effects of time on these specific locales in side-by-side comparison shots. In some ways it's really depressing (imo), but nevertheless, an interesting review of where we've been and an indicator of future trends.

Below is a small sampling of the Cincinnati-related content you'll find in the book (click on images to view larger)...


Cincinnati's Riverfront.

Union Terminal.
For more info, visit the series Topping Out.
Canal/Central Parkway.

Eden Park.
Which reminds me of the post, Lost & Found.



Additionally, the book has great coverage of my undergrad alma mater, Ohio University, and the surrounding Athens locale...

Court Street.

Alumni Gate.

The Ridges.
A related post on this one coming soon.

I found the Athens section particularly interesting because of my own research surrounding OU years ago. While attending college, whenever I had a couple of extra dimes in my pocket, I'd peruse old stores (e.g. Secondhand Rose) for vintage paraphernalia relating to the local history, and occasionally come up with gems like this:





Selections from the Ohio University Undergraduate Catalog (1899-1900).
Compare those yearly rates to the 2009 catalog & fees!
Click images to enlarge.



Lindley Hall, Ohio University (undated).
Compare with today's Lindley Hall.
Click on image to enlarge.


Chubb Hall on College Green, Ohio University (undated).
Compare with today's Chubb Hall.
Click on image to enlarge.


Again, I may someday give this concept a whirl - especially depicting unrealized visions - but until then, give your attention to the great content that others painstakingly produce (at Queen City Discovery, Building Cincinnati, Queen City Survey, etc.).


• Preview more images from the book "Ohio: Then and Now" through Google Book Search, then read it in its entirety by purchasing it (preferably through a local seller).

• Additionally,
if you've never been, be sure to make a day or weekend trip to Athens sometime (pref in the Fall) - it's a historically-interesting town in the middle of the poorest county in Ohio (but arguably the most beautiful).

Friday, May 22, 2009

New for '87!

Kings Island brochure (1987).
Source: Kings Island Central.

With all the marketing and praise that the new Diamondback is getting, let's not forget one of the earliest of the KI whiplash stalwarts: The Vortex.

My friends and I would ride this thing over and over, no matter the wait time - just get a cone for the queue and you're good to go. Not only was it cool to be able to see the old lines for the storied Bat (more info here, and pics here), but a great feature of this construction was the newfound sitelines of the Beast at the top of the first lifthill. Also, one of my favorite memories: Convincing my dad to go on it, once... and "never again!".


Vortex Commercial (1987).
Source: JMReid1220 @ YouTube

Friday, April 10, 2009

WCPO Handbook

WCPO Employee Handbook, cover (1967-1976). 
Illustration by -usterberg(?).

When things as simple as internal handbooks were illustrated with interesting fonts and matching hand-drawn line art.

• From Channel 9's website - specifically, the Pictures from the Past section (found from research from an earlier post on news stations' archives).

 

• Suspected date comes from reference inside the handbook to 1967, but during Jack R. Howards' reign at the station, which ended in 1976 [source].

Friday, March 6, 2009

Brunhoff's Modernity

Just found these while trolling aimlessly through another's visual archives, and they're darn unique ... especially for postcards. I can't stop staring at the first one. So good...

View back of card here.

View back of card here.

• Read about Brunhoff and his contributions to our city here, and an interesting article on his packaging designs here.

Saturday, November 8, 2008

1978 Hangover

In remembrance of Cincinnati's once-great beer-making tradition...and the spectacular writing & acting of the 70s.


"Truck", Hudepohl Brewing Co [1978].
Source.




"Lady in Red", Hudepohl Brewing Co [1978].
Source.



• More info on Hudepohl's history here and here.

Friday, October 24, 2008

Hello from Cincinnati!

...from the noodled concrete urban wasteland of the midwest to you!
  
Postcard (198x).
Source.


Friday, October 17, 2008

Kings Island: An Introduction

The first Kings Island Brochure, cover (1972).
Source.

I've been wanting to post on Kings Island for awhile now, especially after my son's amusement park watershed event this summer, but I'll wait for another day when I can do a full writeup. In a nutshell: Times have changed.

Regarding this brochure cover, it really creates an empathetic feel for the amusement park experience - at least the ones I used to know - which is lent by the illustrated mid-century aesthetic that I tend to drool over; a brightly-colored hand-drawn montage of simple enjoyment. 

The great thing about KI, in the early years at least, is that it was obviously trying to emulate Disney's park model: in general, a main promenade leading to a hub & spoke design, an iconic central structure, themed quadrants, associative popular culture references, a monorail, and corporate sponsorships to keep operating costs in tow.

A beautiful midwestern Disneyland.

Friday, October 10, 2008

The WCET of Lore

WCET-TV logo (198x).
Source: Here or here.

A great retro logo + iconic snapshots of the local culture in its heyday.

My heart aches a little every time I watch this. I loved this era, not only for the countless hours of PBS programming that I associated with my younger years, but for bazillions of other reasons.

My wife's heart also aches, but for something completely different. She thinks I need to spend more time in the present...

...and she's so right.