DeVotchKa Halloween Poster 2010
4-color 18 x 24" Screen-Print
4-color 18 x 24" Screen-Print
DeVotchKa is an alternative rock group from Colorado, and their annual Halloween show has become a Colorado tradition. I had the opportunity to design the poster for this year's Halloween concert.
The Original 'Zombie/Fire' Concept
(without detail)
(without detail)
Halloween is the band's favorite holiday and they get pretty serious about their themes. Before they'd decided upon something, I offered up this original concept.
The band has a very specific feel to their music, often encompassing similar themes of women, relationships and love ('Devotchka' is a Russian word meaning 'girl' or 'woman'). The design shows a woman's hand reaching up for someone, but being pulled down by a group of zombie-like figures. DeVotchKa tends to use a lot of red, the reasoning behind my color choice.
"...something with a Buddhist/Hindu/Indian feel maybe?"
The band did not love the original concept and instead ended up going with a 'Buddhist/Hindu/Indian' theme. Having never designed something with this look before, I did a lot of research prior to creating the new concept.
The band has a very specific feel to their music, often encompassing similar themes of women, relationships and love ('Devotchka' is a Russian word meaning 'girl' or 'woman'). The design shows a woman's hand reaching up for someone, but being pulled down by a group of zombie-like figures. DeVotchKa tends to use a lot of red, the reasoning behind my color choice.
"...something with a Buddhist/Hindu/Indian feel maybe?"
The band did not love the original concept and instead ended up going with a 'Buddhist/Hindu/Indian' theme. Having never designed something with this look before, I did a lot of research prior to creating the new concept.
The Final Print
After doing my research, I decided to do an illustration of a four armed diety-esque female figure. A lot of my favorite 'Buddhist/Hindu/Indian' imagery had a central focal point, usually centralized on a sitting, multi-armed figure. They were usually accompanied by a variety of symbolic images. With all this in mind, I began developing and modifying ideas to incorporate everything for the show:
The band loved it, but as expected, brought back a few suggestions. I nixed the snakes and replaced the skull necklace with marigolds, and changed the browns to red and black (and chose to replace the orange with the gold). Now that the design had been generally agreed upon, I polished everything, added my final touches, and sent it to print.
After doing my research, I decided to do an illustration of a four armed diety-esque female figure. A lot of my favorite 'Buddhist/Hindu/Indian' imagery had a central focal point, usually centralized on a sitting, multi-armed figure. They were usually accompanied by a variety of symbolic images. With all this in mind, I began developing and modifying ideas to incorporate everything for the show:
The band loved it, but as expected, brought back a few suggestions. I nixed the snakes and replaced the skull necklace with marigolds, and changed the browns to red and black (and chose to replace the orange with the gold). Now that the design had been generally agreed upon, I polished everything, added my final touches, and sent it to print.
The final print, signed by all 4 band members.
Special thanks to DeVotchKa and Ray from GoodThoughts4All Screenprinting in Boulder, CO.
