Photo Shoot - Fred Fowle

This photo shoot was acquired during a number of different trips. The first of which was to the Great Dorset Steam Fair where replicated versions of Fowle's distinct style were on show. I have attempted to photograph the artwork in different ways to be less repetitive to view. The second trip was to Nottingham Goose Fair were I was able to get photos of Jimmy Bowrys Skid which is painted in Fowle's style and the remix Waltzer which is a modern vinyl printed version of Fowle's work. The final photos show pieces of work like Fowle's in storage at a showman's yard. These are very useful in understanding the effect that Flamboyant paint creates. The main issues within this photo shoot were many of the pieces were in storage which meant trying to photograph items in hard to get to places or pitch black sheds. Another issue was capturing the bright lights and movement of the rides which required a high quality camera than what I used.

Mercury, God of Speed, a popular motif for Fred Fowles work

An example of modern psychedelic art work, the safety barrier is a popular design created from fiberglass. 

A very typical design of Fowle's, the flying wheel.

An up close view of flamboyant paintwork, the way the aluminium leaf shines through from underneath can be clearly seen.

Artist Research - Fred Fowle

Fred Fowle's career in art began by painting a black line on shoes. From here he went on to work at R.J.Lakin's fairground ride manufactures where he learnt the skills that led to him becoming known as 'The Master' in the fairground community. Fowle's style is highly recognizable and can be viewed as an Era in fairground decor in its own right. His heavy use of bright colours and elaborate design mixed with images from advertisements and films meant that his work was highly effective in drawing in crowds of people towards a certain ride. His work largely involves using a base layer of aluminium and gold leaf on top of which a layer of flamboyant paint is applied. The flamboyant paint is translucent and allows the leaf to shine through adding a little magic to the designs. An important factor when children are the main target audience for a piece. Fowle's work often portrays the psychedelic and pop art styles of the art movements in the 60's and 70's.  
I hope to be able to portray Fowle's style in my own sampling through using similar mediums and working with the same ideas and inspiration. This will involve gathering photos and newspaper snippets of adverts with interesting designs on along with getting to grips with completely new mediums like gold leaf. I intend to create an array of different samples with some being much more experimental than others as I get to grips with the new mediums and styles.

Sampling - Joby Carter - Large Piece

Large Piece of Self Designed Sign Writing

To start with the phrase was written out to gain an understanding of the proportions of each letter. From there it was scaled up and the block colour filled in using blue acrylic. Gold acrylic outlining followed by silver 3D effect was then painted in. I would say this experiment was unsuccessful as the acrylic hasn't provided a flat enough finish as it dries before brush marks can settle, it also isn't gloss so doesn't provide a shine. Also using general paint brushes means long flowing lines aren't possible to achieve. To refine my technique in future experiments I will use long bristled sign writers brushes which can carry a lot of paint in one stroke. The piece is more successful in that it provides a bright, appealing and noticeable way of portraying information. I now want to combine the knowledge I have gained on sign writing with general ride decoration as I begin to study the artist Fred Fowle.

Sampling - Joby Carter - Replication of Existing Artwork

Replication

For this piece I will attempt to replicate an existing piece of sign writing. The piece is one of the names from Harry Lee's Steam Yachts

The piece was painted in acrylics starting with a cream base coat then the black outline of the letters were created with fine liner and the blue and gold applied before adding the red shadowing. I think this is an accurate representation of the piece considering it is in a much smaller scale. It has allowed me to gain an understanding of how the writing is constructed and how to create complex fonts. The piece really captures the ideas of brightness and attractiveness that are a common theme throughout the fair

. From here i will go on to develop my own pieces and fonts developing different colour combinations for them

Sampling - Joby Carter - Testing Mediums

Testing Mediums
 Experimentation of different mediums to create sign written letters on paper

 Watercolour Pencils. Letter drawn out then coloured in using the pencil's. Pencil lines then blended out using water. This medium is very good for creating shadowing as different tones are easily created. It is unsuitable in a real world situation as the pencil wouldn't adhere to a painted gloss surface.

 Watercolour. Letter drawn out and then colour painted in. This medium creates a great solid block colour but again wouldn't adhere to a gloss surface so is no good in practice.

Enamel's. Letter is drawn out and then a number of coats of enamel are applied. This is a medium used in real life and for understandable reasons. It provides a great shine that is durable and adheres to many surfaces such as metal and gloss paintwork.
The aim of these experiments were to learn the basic process of sign writing as far as constructing the letters goes. From here I will attempt to replicate some existing sign writing.

Photo shoot - Joby Carter

Photo shoot

For the bulk of this photo shoot I went to the Great Dorset Steam Fair where the largest selection of vintage fairground rides are on show. This meant there was a large variety of sign writing on show that I have attempted to photograph in a way that not only documents it but displays it in the natural setting while incorporating photographic techniques. Other photos where obtained from a close family friends yard where a number of fairground rides are undergoing restoration.

Gold leaf writing on Fairground Transport

Scenic paintings on Carters Steam Yacht

Paintwork on Steam Yacht Staircase

Pin striping design on Steam Yachts

Scenic painting on Carters Galloper

Carters Octopus with elaborate sign writing

Carters Side Show, once a fairground staple

Details of Carters Grand Palace of Entertainment/Freak Show

Sign Writing on Carters Side Show

Sign Writing from Harry Lee's Steam Yachts

The Organ and Decoration of Harry Lee's Yachts

Gilded Gold Leaf sign on Glass

Demonstrating the durability of sign writing 

Intricate Sign Writing on a set of Boats

Intricate Sign Writing on a set of Boats

Up close of the detail on the boat's sign writing

Artist Research - Joby Carter

Joby Carter

Joby Carter was born into the Carter families fun fair. Surrounded by the fantastic art, that adorned the families rides, from a young age he wanted to learn the art of sign writing. He landed himself an apprenticeship with master sign writer Stan Wilkinson and is now considered one of the 21st centuries best sign writers.

 His work can be found on any of the Carter's ride's along with many other showmen's ride's who have commissioned his work. He has also given talks on the history of sign writing in Universities and Art Schools.

 The main medium used by Carter is Sign Writers Enamel a specially formulated quick drying enamel paint, favored for its bright vibrant finish and its durability, essential when the rides are taken down and put back up week in week out.Gold and Aluminium leaf is often used as well to provide a level of grandeur to a ride. The surfaces for the works are a mix of Soft and Hard woods, sheet metal and ply wood, the materials the rides are constructed from. The final durable glossy shine is created by numerous layers of varnish. 

The artwork is designed to catch the public's eye and draw them towards the ride where they will hopefully spend their money. I will be using Carter's influence to re-create pieces of existing sign writing and then create my own sign writing. I plan to study the different typography's used by Carter and use these in my own work. I will also allow Carters work to influence a level of fine detail in my work.