Big Machine Works

Take a look! A spread from DOORS AT SEVEN, my new book available now. This was the process of creating a poster for Baltimore’s own @kenyattatheband , an ensemble working to celebrate the experience of live dance music. This book was made so I could critically reflect on my own processes, and note the little decisions made along the way to create these posters, highlighting the tangible and tactile processes that stem from exploration and play first and foremost. DOORS AT SEVEN: posters and process 2023-2026 is now available on my site and through select retailers.

The cover for DOORS AT SEVEN was intended to be a wraparound, with the image on the front and back as a single continuous piece. I wanted this cover to be a collection featuring the library of characters and visual motifs that fill the book, and decided to work in a way that would spur new discoveries while also being an accessible medium that could be reworked and edited in a way that would leave little artifacts and pentimenti behind as the image was built up. This drawing was done in pencil, with small touches of white out and micron. The final product is soft and tactile, a visual departure from the graphic sensibility showcased in the book, but also speaks to the ways in which revision builds out ideas from skeletal strokes and doodles to something immersive and intriguing. DOORS AT SEVEN: posters and process 2023-2026 is now available on my website and at @atomicbooksbaltimore and @micastore1826 #pencil #pencil #pencil #pencil!

Announcing DOORS AT SEVEN: posters and process 2023-2026 This book traces three years of posters and fliers created for Baltimore, Dc and beyond, showcasing sketches, commentary, influences and unused/never before seen concepts that inform the creation of these works. This book is a celebration of the organizers, collaborators and artists that make these great events happen, and ensure that work is seen by those who will love it. 50 copies are available now for the first run on my site, with copies available at @atomicbooksbaltimore and @micastore1826 (more to be announced shortly) This book is published by Big Machine Works @bigmachineworks , an independent publishing imprint created by @thehowley with the mission of showing the scraps, sketches and internal mechanisms that drive process based work. Thank you to my mentors, friends, family, and all those who have shown up for the great art happening in charm city. Love, Jay Howley Third slide is the book on my coffee table for reference if you also own a coffee table and plan on putting the book on yours. Works great. (The book underneath mine on the coffee table is by @micahewood and @christopherjchester :) ) Hashtags (obligatory): #baltimore #posterdesigncommunity #poster #posterart #primussucks

BIG MACHINE is a small press imprint started in 2021 More to come!