Bill Graham Presents #229

Name/Title

Bill Graham Presents #229

Type of Print

Lithograph

Collection

Rock Posters Collection

Made/Created

Artist

Singer, David

Manufacturer

Tea Lautrec Litho

Date made

1970

Notes

Artist's Gender: M

Dimensions

Height

7 in

Width

4-1/2 in

Copyright

Copyright Holder

Graham, Bill

Copyright Date

1970

Interpretative Labels

Label Type

Object Label

Label

This poster has many layers to it, physically and metaphorically. Compared to Singer’s other works, this poster feels almost overloaded with visual information and cultural reference. There is a lot of movement created through the placement of the collaged elements. When examining each of the elements, there is no immediate correlation between any, pointing towards the reason for psychedelic art’s popularity within the counterculture movement—it encourages visual exploration and individual interpretation. As an artist, David Singer presents his works for the viewers to decipher for themselves, and how they may or may not relate to the story that he has pieced together. He creates a sense of whimsy through the common themes found in each of his photomontage works.

Label Type

Artist Bio

Label

David Singer was born and raised in Quakertown, Pennsylvania, surrounded by the Pennsylvania Dutch culture. He was exposed to very intricate folk art, and David Singer gravitated towards it. From an early age, Singer was very creative, and artistically gifted. After he graduated high school, he enlisted in the Navy and served until 1964, then settled in San Francisco. After working many odd jobs, Singer found himself meeting with Bill Graham, the founder and promoter of the iconic Fillmore West music venue, to review his portfolio. After twenty minutes of silently studying Singers’ work, Graham immediately commissioned Singer to create twelve new posters. This launched his career with full force—David Singer was commissioned the most work out of all of the iconic Fillmore West Rock poster artists, creating a total of sixty posters for Bill Graham between 1969-1971.