17 March 21 - 27, 2024 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents A t the Hawn Gallery in the Hamon Arts Library at Southern Methodist Univer- sity, iconic objects fill floor- to-ceiling glass vitrines to the brim. But it’s not rare books or illustrious manuscripts that are on display. Instead, cases are overstuffed with glossy posters, collectible buttons and faded flyers from concerts held decades ago, all the ephemera of a life spent loving — and watch- ing — an era of influential music. Torn Apart: New Wave Graphics, Fashion & Culture 1976– 1986 is a glimpse into how music is trans- lated visually throughout time. Torn Apart curator Andrew Krivine (who owns one of the world’s largest private col- lections of punk and post-punk memora- bilia) says that from the very beginning promotional musical graphics and imagery were as important as a band’s sound. The photocopied paper slips designed to support a gig or record are often a fan’s first glimpse into what sound they could expect. “The graphics were absolutely essential, and … posters and flyers became essential extensions of the core graphical work, the [record] sleeve,” Krivine says. “This art form remains vital because, for me, I see the mu- sic and graphics as fused, impossible to dis- aggregate. Because music is an eternal art form, this is also true of the graphics.” From the early concert posters commis- sioned by country and blues musicians from Nashville’s 140-year-old Hatch Show Print to the imagery currently crafted by Lewellyn’s Print Shop in Deep Ellum, album covers and flyers have conveyed a three-di- mensional vision in a two-dimensional space. In Dallas alone, iconic visuals define artists in many genres, including Charley Crockett, Abraham Alexander and Joshua Ray Walker. Today, at least locally, more and more fe- male artists are creating imagery for covers, posters and flyers. Yet their innovative work comes at a time when music industry budgets are cut to the bone. The use of digital media has also limited the demand for unique, col- lectible posters and other ephemera. It’s harder than ever to make a living by creating these kinds of graphics. But the wide reach of social media platforms such as Insta- gram has allowed an ever-growing audience access to up-and-coming talent’s art, opening up a future where the work of graphic artists focused on music could make the leap from the merch table to gallery walls. The Musician Is the Messenger O ften, musicians create their own visu- als simply because they need promo- tional material without a major label budget. Rock graphics intrigued singer/gui- tarist Hunter Moehring of the local band FIT when he was growing up. His dad was an illustrator for Seattle’s historic Eagles Au- ditorium in the 1960s, creating imagery for artists such as Alice Cooper, the Grateful Dead and Donovan. The late artist Frank Kozik, whose work was a stamp of approval for 1990s alterna- tive artists, was another significant influ- ence on Moehring, as were hardcore posters for Black Flag and the Bad Brains. Initially intending to focus on music as a career, Moehring says he “fell in love with both [forms], and graphic art became more and more consistent because it was a much bet- ter way to pay the bills. “Often you’re a musician and start off making your own posters and get into it through that,” he says. “With a lot of musi- cians and designers, there’s a massive over- lap in the Venn diagram.” When he’s not touring, Moehring is the design director at the community relations firm Cowan Roberts. He also creates posters and album designs for the Vandoliers, Old 97’s and Walker, as well as the Oak Cliff venue Revelers Hall. “Now I’m in a very nice part of my career where I don’t have to take every project, so I really only do posters for bands I like or peo- ple I like,” Moehring says. Musician/graphic artist Claire Morales also began making her show posters in high school before transitioning into album art for friends and herself when she entered design school at the University of North Texas. Drawn to the retro imagery of Strawberry Shortcake, Lisa Frank and the Care Bears, she says that, as a woman, she was naturally at- tuned to the subtle feelings and thoughts con- veyed in a song. “I think women are intuitive and empa- thetic and able to listen really well,” she says. “We can read what someone needs emotion- ally, and graphic design is a lot of being able to understand someone and empathize with them and create something that’s going to be what they needed illustrated.” When working with another musician, Morales starts with research, listening to the band and discovering what makes them “dif- ferent and special.” Next, she gathers colors and fonts before creating pencil concepts to create the final art. Although much of her work leans toward a candy-colored psyche- delic vibe, the linear skyline she created for the jazz fusion combo Snarky Puppy’s Grammy Award-winning Empire Central is Morales’ most notable project. Ladies First T oday, women such as Morales are thriving across Dallas’ nightclubs and venues, with female artists and pro- moters embracing what was formerly a male-dominated industry. Hunter Moehring Hunter Moehring’s Joshua Ray Walker poster. ▼ Music The artists designing Dallas’ rock aesthetic. BY KENDALL MORGAN Music TO YOur EYEs Mike Brooks Mike Brooks Claire Morales Morales’ Helium Queens poster from 2021. Artist Kaia Bellanca creates collage-heavy music posters. Musician Claire Morales studied design at UNT. >> p18
