Greeb’s Oysters
Original acrylic on board
Image: 10″ x 40″
Framed: 14″ x 44″
$2800

Giclée print on canvas
Edition of 300 S/N
Image: 9″ x 36″
$250

I have always loved old advertising, and for many years I collected antique signs, both wooden and tin. The signs promoted such things as patent medicines, shotgun shells, chewing tobacco and other sundry products, using interesting graphics and sometimes great slogans. I have a small but colorful collection of antique oyster cans dating back to the early 1900’s. Many have been used as props in my still life paintings. I had been looking for an authentic wooden trade sign advertising oysters for sale to go with my can collection, but like most great antiques, the prices have gone sky high. So I decided to create my own. One idea led to another, and I ended up creating a series of “old” signs, painted in my trompe l’oeil style to look like wood or tin.

As I often do (as most artists do), I took advantage of “Artistic License” in my signs. In most cases I used actual brands as a basis, but I changed the names a bit.  In a couple of the signs the names are completely made up, based on a region or on local color. I had a lot of fun painting these pieces and they are intended simply to be colorful additions to homes, offices, or other spaces that are already decorated with antiques, old advertising or folk art.

The “Greeb’s Oysters” Giclee print is intended to look like an old board hanging on a wall. It can be ordered in either of two options. One is the way most of my Giclee prints are done; canvas mounted on a board, which requires a frame. The second option is called “Gallery Wrapping,” which consists of the canvas print stretched over a wooden frame to look like a one half inch board. It does not require framing, and is ready to hang on the wall.