Journal of the mental environment
“It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society.”
Are posters the new punk?
New flick, Died Young Stayed Pretty, documents the growth of the underground poster scene.
- Wed, 24 Sep 2008 11:58 am — Posted by Jon
- | 9 comments
There’s this new film out that you should watch. Directed by Vancouver’s Eileen Yaghoobian, Died Young Stayed Pretty is an exclusive glimpse into the art subculture of rock poster production.
“DIED YOUNG, STAYED PRETTY is a candid look at the renaissance of North America’s underground, indie-rock poster movement spurred by the unexpected launch of groupie Clayton Hayes’ web portal Gigposters.com. Picking up where punk left off, this documentary reveals a new breed of counter-culturists that set out to destroy the mainstream through their controversial and intensely visceral design work.
Under the guise of advertising for rocks shows, these unheralded masters of the silkscreen and Xerox machine carry on public discourses that range from hot button political issues to lewd inside jokes. Stealing from the golden era of Americana, they pervert classic pop culture references and slap it in the face of polite society while safely treading under the radar.
DIED YOUNG, STAYED PRETTY offers a look at some of the giants of this modern subculture, some who go for broke to maintain their creative workshops while others have found tremendous commercial success, including Art Chantry, Brian Chippendale, the Ames Brothers, Jeff Kleinsmith, Jay Ryan, Print Mafia and Rob Jones. Yaghoobian sneaks her lens into the lives of these self-professed radicals to discover where the real punk power lies, if any remains.”
DYSP is a thoroughly enjoyable film. It pulls back the curtain on poster production in the same way that Helvetica did for type design in 2007. It also raises important questions about the role of the poster in modern society. Are posters the new punk rock, or are they a meaningless pastiche of haphazardly selected cultural signifiers? Regardless of your stance, Died Young Stayed Pretty provides a unique view into the world of the independent poster maker and should give viewers a better idea of the effort that goes into making gig posters and of the motivations behind them.
Here is a taste:
Sorry, flash is not available.
The film is playing at POP Montreal on Friday Oct. 3rd.
Also, check out the trailer in our ABTV section.
Comments
The words of the prophet are written on the subway walls...
no one has labeled them evil, i think it was just pointed out that it is ironic to find it on adbusters. the wording used by the press release sells the poster scene in a way that suggests it is about certain attitudes which may or may not be the case. it's being packaged by someone, and that's worth noting.
I think it's possible to get a little too cynical about this stuff. Of course posters are a form of advertising, in fact they're one of the earliest forms. But if the posters in question are used to promote independent artists and local events (as many on gigposters.com are) then is it necessary to immediately write them off as evil? Promotional communication can be used in the service of good just as easily as it can be used to hock garbage. It's too simple to just demonize something for being promotional.
How can it be the new "punk" if punk was music, wheras this is just making posters. im confused.
Some argue that early punk was more about attitude and fashion then it was about the music. Self-admittedly most of the early punk bands didn't really know how to play their instruments anyways, for a lot of them it was more about expression and simply saying or doing something, anything. Obviously it's evolved as a genre musically and politically, the late 80's took the most political stance giving up nihilistic tendencies that were strong when it first started, and pushing for a stronger sense of community and activism. The early 90's pushed it more towards music and something that was viewed as 'cool' if still somewhat outside the mainstream. Now, well the surface of punk rock (music and fashion) have been completely co-opted by MTv and Target, but the only saving grace is that mainstream corporate culture will move on, deem punk rock uncool in a few years and then it'll start to leave and breath again without this teenie-bopper sore festering on it's face. For what it's worth, I still believe it's a valid movement with something to say.
Re-inventing yourself? Not sure I follow. I also find it interesting how this particular scene is being sold in the press release of the film (incorporating language like radical, punk, and "destroying the mainstream"). Haven't seen the film yet so I'm only speaking about the trailer.
My interpretation of Gigposters.com is a site compiled of advertisements, supported by advertisements.
Got no beefs with that at all... but here on Adbusters? I see an advertisement for a film about advertisements.
:)
it's more about reinventing one self rather than advertisement..
agreed. it's a film about advertising,some of it for corporate entities (like clear channel, major record labels, etc). i guess it's "punk" in that sense, as "punk" is pretty much a commodity now anyway.
Seems odd that this would be associated with Adbusters. Gigposters are advertisements.
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