Chalk Talk

313chalk typeCustom piece for a wedding reception, by Dana Tanamachi

The design firm that I work for during the day is SOS Design Inc. The main client that I work with is Dancap Productions, a company that brings live musical productions to Toronto. One of these shows, which will be in Toronto  in December 2011, is Memphis.

312Memphis
The key art for this show is quite vibrant and I was interested in finding out who created the look. In doing a bit of research I discovered Dana Tanamachi. She designed the Memphis poster while working at Spotco (Art Direction by Darren Cox. Photography by Jason Bell).

While looking at her website I found what she is most known for… her unique talent for chalk typography.

I emailed her for permission to use her work in this blog and she replied with an enthusiastic yes! She went on to talk about her inspiration:

“A big inspiration behind my work is the idea of community. It brings me great joy to see people dancing, eating, and laughing with my chalk pieces as the backdrop. Even the idea of creating these pieces was birthed out of my community of friends here in Brooklyn. I find that I am continually inspired by so many of the creative people that I live life with—it’s those friends who initially saw my love of letterforms and encouraged me to explore that passion even further.

What I love about chalk is that it is such an ephemeral medium. We use it to scribble or doodle with, but rarely do we consider carefully crafting something with it. Maybe it goes against our practical nature—why spend time on something that will be gone in a day, week or month? But that’s why it’s the perfect medium— because for me it’s about the process. I love starting out on a clean wall, climbing up on a ladder, sketching with broad strokes, refining the letterforms, adding little details, etc. It’s a chance for me to take a break from the computer and create something purely by hand. I’m such a crafter at heart!”

314Dana Tanamachi chalk typeThe Wes Anderson (Sketch), Brooklyn, by Dana Tanamachi

315Dana Tanamachi chalkThe Wes Anderson (Final), Brooklyn, by Dana Tanamachi

316Tanamachi“Alice-In-Wonderland-themed Double Un-birthday” party, Brooklyn, by Dana Tanamachi

http://www.danatanamachi.com/

http://www.hellosos.com/

http://www.dancaptickets.com/