Tag: Satelluxe

Love classic, midcentury signage as much as I do? Well, now you can own a piece for your very own, available at my new site, Satelluxe!

In all the time I've spent on the road researching my books, driving through aging and historic towns, I acquired an insatiable love of Googie, a style of design prevalent in old motels and their eye-catching signage. These days, I can't hit the road without stopping repeatedly to photograph a collection of big arrows, oversize type and flashing neon.

Unfortunately, such treasures are quickly disappearing from the roadside, and acquiring a piece for oneself is becoming exceptionally difficult due to surviving signs' size or deteriorating condition. For this reason, I started producing designs of my own, inspired by the very items I see out on the road.

If you've ever hoped to grab a piece of Googie to take home with you, head on over to Satelluxe and have a look. And keep checking back, because there's more to come soon!

A few weeks ago, I announced my new obsession with creating Googie-inspired art pieces and the completion of #001, a slightly weathered, 3 1/2-foot metal arrow, complete with chasing lights, the likes of which you might still find pointing the way to a run-down, roadside motel.

Well, the arrow made it into the hands of Minnesota resident and appreciator of midcentury design Karl Madcharo, whose exact words upon receiving said pointing device were, "It looks sweet," after which he promised to send photos once he chose an appropriate place to hang it.

Well, lucky for us, he's done more than that and has submitted photos of his entire pad to Apartment Therapy's House Tours, so we can all burn with envy over his superbly decorated and swank living quarters.

And I have to say, I think his self-built front door beats the pants off my arrow.

Not too long ago, I decided to take my love of art, power tools, roadside travel and midcentury signage, and combine them into what I hoped could be a new, artistic aspect of my career.

Well, the day has come, and I've just posted the first in a series of handcrafted, Googie-style pieces to eBay. It's simple in appearance, but complex in character, bringing to mind aging diners, motels and bowling alleys.

The big, red arrow's thirty-one bulbs flash in sequence — adjustable in both speed and brightness — and its surface is weathered with a light patina that suggests years of roadside pointing.

I'm already working on future pieces, but this is number "001," so head on over and have a look before it's gone.

Oh, and I've created a short video showing the arrow in action (below). ... Continued