I make collages and word posters from vintage and retro illustrations and images in the public domain. Here’s my latest piece, ‘J is for Journey’.
Had a lot of fun making this one, a lot of good words that begin with J 😊
Lovely stuff - and, looking at all the detail, this must have taken quite a while. Are you planning to do the full alphabet?
Thank you! 😃
It does take a lot of time, but my database of finished images is growing, meaning material from related projects can be recycled more often, and I’m getting much better at organizing and finding source material as well.
I actually timed my hours working on J (not including compiling word lists and all the work on getting the print files ready) because my silent partner wanted to know if I could finish all the letters of the alphabet before christmas (it looks like I might be able to pull it off): 40 hours, spread over two weeks.
I did a single poster with the full Danish alphabet in December last year, so there was a good selection of material from that one that I was able to recycle, saving some time. The most time consuming aspect is the restoration and masking of the vintage illustrations, so having a good, searchable database of all my assets is priceless (I’m using Eagle and it’s been worth every penny), and I’ve finally managed to import and tag them all.
This is the tenth letter in the English Letters series that I’ve finished. The rest of them can be seen on my Instagram. Migrating to a Pixelfed instance is on my to-do.
Reusing clips and maintaining a database sounds really wise for this kind of work. I can recall doing physical collages twice for some classes a few years back. I had a real headache from handling the gluing to finding good clips, and I didn’t make an effort to save the rest of the page. I probably lost out on some good stuff there 🤧.
Doing collages digitally sounds like so much fun to me though, and Eagle sounds like just what the doctor ordered. I tried using XYPlorer, and it’s quite a robust improvement on the Windows explorer. The problem is that it seems to get tricky with cloud drive files in my experience. Eagle looks like it has a ton of potential for the kind of stuff I like to do.
The database is priceless, especially because of the ability to tag and filter files.
As I work in both Danish and English, an example of tagging for the Jackrabbit from this poster would be:
- hare (Danish for hare, no specific word for Jackrabbit)
- jackrabbit
- hare
- mammal
- rabbit (might be relevant for it to show up in a search for rabbit)
- fauna-dk (this animal is found in Denmark, relevant for potential local animal posters)
Most importantly for my use case, I have a set of special tags denoting which letters a given image can be used for in English or Danish:
- h-dk
- h-en
- j-en
So when I need to make the English H poster (which I’m currently working on), I simply search for h-en (starts with H in English), and Eagle gives me all relevant assets. I add these tags manually (as well as stuff like fauna-dk), but because Eagle indexes filenames super well, I’ve recently taken to just adding most of the basic info to the filenames, like this:
danish-word_english-word__tags-go-here.psd
I save everything as Photoshop PSD files, so if I make an alteration to a file for a specific project, that is saved for all future projects, but the original, unaltered version is still there as a hidden layer if I need it. Simple version control 😊
I also do a lot of analogue collage, and must admit I’ve yet to find a workable system for storing and sorting my materials; I feel your pain.
I definitely recommend Eagle if you think it fits your use case. Along with Obsidian (for project notes and writing), it is by far the best piece of software I’ve found in ages 😃
Didn’t see the captions at first and was like: “Ah, yes. Jragon.” 😂 Lovely work, so much creativity in one place!
J is for Jinosaur, you can’t tell me otherwise
I actually had a J dinosaur on my list, but couldn’t find a useable illustration of one. I’ll check my lists, see if I can find it 👍
That left Jurassic; was struggling a bit to figure out how to illustrate that, until I came up with the park/ark pun. Obviously no illustrations of that, but I managed to collage one together from 5 different source images, and I’m very happy with the result 😁🦖🚢
Edit: there are actually a lot of dinosaurs that begin with J, but no luck with finding PD illustrations of any of them.
Dinosaurs are notoriously tricky in regards to public domain stuff, extremely slim pickings 😓🦕
Haha, I really like the Jurassic Ark and think you did a great job. I was just joking around. Great poster!
It’s one of my favorite parts of doing these, getting little puns and jokes in there — glad you noticed, that makes it all worth it! 😍 A lot of the little details go unnoticed 😅
Yeah, Jragon! 😅
I sometimes have to be a bit creative in how I
shoehornfinesse the various words into the posters 😁 I often find something really great, but for a letter I’ve already published, so it’s a question of figuring out how to make it work for a different letter 😊
Was looking for Jane Goodall… but guess she’s not in the public domain yet.
Missing some Jackalope though, and you put jar twice (even if one is of Joney). The Jurassic Ark, is the one that sunk?
Nice collage 🙂
Jane would be a great addition, but I try to avoid people who are still alive, keeping the theme as close to retro/vintage as possible. That said, there are a few images of her in the public domain, although no illustrations that I can find.
Jackalope would have been a great addition, sorry I missed that one! Maybe I should replace the Jackrabbit, or take one of the jars out (although intentional) in a future edition 🤔
Sometimes I just miss words, and sometimes it’s a question of available material. I have extensive word lists in spreadsheets for each letter, compiled from a bunch of sources, but there will always be stuff that slips through the cracks 😅
I heard that the Jurassic Ark didn’t actually sink, but got sucked down the maelstrom and ended up in the hollow core at the center of the earth 🦖🦕🌴
Thank you for the feedback and compliment 😊
Incidentally, I did some further research on the legal aspects of the Jane Goodall suggestion. After reading a bunch of different articles, none of which fit my use case exactly, I just asked ChatGPT (which prefaced its response with IANAL - good bot!):
ME / prompt:
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I design alphabet posters, where a given poster is for a specific letter. As an example, there is a poster for the letter J. A large letter J is surrounded by illustrations of words that begin with J. The posters are for sale. The posters are of an educational nature, although not affiliated with any official educational institution, but sold from my private company.
Is it legal to use original illustrations of famous people on such a poster? As an example, for the J poster, I would like to use an original illustration of primatologist Jane Goodall, accompanied by her name, as she is a famous person whose name starts with the letter J.
ChatGPT
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I am not a lawyer, but I can provide some general information on this topic. When using original illustrations of famous people on your alphabet posters, you may encounter certain legal considerations related to copyright, right of publicity, and trademark laws. It’s important to consult with a legal professional to get personalized advice based on your specific situation and jurisdiction.
Here are some key points to consider:
— Copyright: If the original illustration of Jane Goodall is created by you or someone who has given you permission to use it, there may not be a copyright issue. However, if the illustration is based on a copyrighted photograph or image of Jane Goodall without permission, it could potentially lead to copyright infringement.
— Right of Publicity: The right of publicity is a person’s right to control the commercial use of their name, image, or likeness. Since Jane Goodall is a public figure, using her likeness for commercial purposes without her permission might raise right of publicity concerns.
— Trademark: The use of a famous person’s name, image, or likeness could potentially lead to trademark issues if the person’s name is a registered trademark, or if the use creates confusion about an endorsement or association with your products.
— Fair Use: In some cases, the concept of “fair use” might apply, allowing the use of copyrighted material without permission for purposes such as criticism, commentary, or educational use. However, fair use is a complex legal doctrine, and it’s best to consult with a legal professional to determine if it applies in your specific situation.
To stay on the safe side, you should consider the following actions:
— Create original illustrations of public figures or obtain permission from the individuals to use their likeness.
— Use illustrations of individuals who are no longer protected by publicity rights due to historical context (the duration of these rights varies by jurisdiction).
— Focus on using illustrations of individuals who are not public figures or famous, to avoid potential legal issues.
Again, it’s essential to consult with an attorney who specializes in intellectual property law to get precise advice tailored to your specific circumstances and local regulations.
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This looks to be pretty much in line with the stuff I found myself.
I guess Jane Goodall could be used, in theory, under “fair use” / educational use (and using original artwork), but I’m not sure a private company (me) can claim to create educational material without some sort of educational affiliation.
Also, my understanding of “fair use” (limited, granted) is that it is a defence, not a right; that is, it’s something you claim once someone sues you for infringement, not a right like “freedom of the press”.
Of course, I could always just ask her. I can still shoehorn her in under G (Goodall, Jane), or P (primatologist, Jane Goodall) 😊
I already reference a few people and characters on the J poster, namely Juliet Capulet (Romeo & Juliet, out of copyright / public domain), Jane Austen (author), Jack London (author). The latter two have both been dead for 100+ years, so at the very least their works are in the public domain. I’m actually not sure if that means that their names are as well 🤔
EDIT: Here’s an article on post-mortem right of publicity, at least as it pertains to the U.S. It seems it’s a state-level law, meaning the rules vary wildly between states (anywhere from 20 to 100 years, and from “indefinitely” (if still in use, e.g. Elvis) to “never”). So for Jane & Jack mentioned above, I’d be (mostly — looking at you, Tennessee!) in the clear because they’ve been dead for for 100+ years.
By the way, I’m currently working on H — let me know if you have any suggestions for words, maybe I missed another good one! 😊👌
H… Hm… I think my favorite H word is “hohlraum”, not sure if you could find an illustration though.
You definitively have to have “hieroglyph”, maybe “hangul” but illustration could be a challenge, there are some interesting illustrations of “hyperborea”. “Hierophant”, “Henry VIII”, “Hansel and Gretel”, “Hans Christian Andersen”… a lot of animals and plants like “horse”, “hippopotamus”, “hedgehog”, “hen”… “hyacinth”, “hemlock”, “hemp”… “helicopter”, “hovercraft”, “hyperbaric chamber”… “Hans Christian Joachim Gram”, “Alexander von Humboldt”, “Jürgen Habermas”, “Grace Hopper”, “Henrietta Swan Leavit”. This one might be a bit grim to illustrate: “Henrietta Lacks”. “Hodgepodge”, “Helen of Troy”, “Himalayas”, “hot porridge”, “Hyperion”.
A lot to choose from 😄
Thank you! Some great suggestions, and I’ll definitely include Hieroglyph and Himalayas!
A lot of the others I already have. Think I’ll save Hohlraum for possible future German posters 😅 Also think radiation thermodynamics might be a bit outside of my target group 🤔
Henrietta Lacks — a culture in a petri dish, maybe? You’re right, probably a bit too grim, again with the target group in mind 😅
I’m trying to include Greek mythology a lot (even considering a whole poster with just that theme), but not sure if Hyperion is well known enough. I do love Dan Simmons’ “Hypreion Cantos”, so maybe it’s justified. The way I curate the images/words is definitely very colored by my personal preferences 😊
Nice!
Thank you! ❤️
