Currently at the Riverside Art Museum, Jeff Soto (interviewed) has a show on view featuring his screen-printed gig posters and fine art prints from the last 15 years. Entitled Potatostamp, the retrospective look at this aspect of the locally-based artist’s career includes over 70 posters, as well as 40 original ink drawings. Also on display are over 100 screen-printed works from Soto’s collection in an adjacent mini group show.
He states – “A different frame of mind comes into play when creating gig posters. They are illustrative and serve as merch for the bands but they also have to invoke the spirit of the music. I enjoy the creative freedom given with gig posters and it’s fun to match the band’s music with visuals. I also enjoy the technical aspects of creating screen prints. There are size limitations, and a limited amount of colors and papers to choose from. The layering and trapping of colors, and creating halftone and gradients sometimes feel like an artistic puzzle. These technical challenges make screen printing interesting and creatively rewarding to me.”
This Saturday, September 23rd, Soto will be giving a presentation (half gallery talk and slideshow) at the museum starting at 1 pm. He’ll be sharing stories about his art and travels with a focus on his poster works.
Discuss Jeff Soto here.
