'Visual Feast', the tantalizing artwork of Justin Hampton

Updatio Daddio!
3 months ago – Fri, Aug 09, 2024 at 06:32:13 PM

Hey there! It's been a little while so it's time for another update for Visual Feast! 

As you know from last time I mentioned that I had been taken to task by my printer overseas with a bunch of technical issues in the files. All of these amazing suggestions and fixes have made the book a much higher quality tome worthy of being in your faithful hands! The previous printer that I was originally working with just wanted to run everything as it was and take the cash. These guys are the most professional and detail oriented folks I've ever worked with. I'm truly grateful for their assistance and your continued support. The files are good to go. We're just working out all of the technical details in metallic inks and spot varnishes in the very final step. We're in production mode and I will have something to show you guys VERY soon. I could not be more excited!! 

In the meantime here's some other things that I've been up to in this very busy summer season! 

Down but not out!

I had a new poster that was going to debut tomorrow for a certain band that cancelled a certain tour. I'm in talks with the band to hopefully release a version of that poster in the near future. I'll announce it as soon as I have news about that. It's an instant classic poster and deserves to be seen and soon! No previews for that one but trust me, it's a banger! Stay tuned for that one. 

On a related note for those folks that are going to or live in Eugene, I will be having a merch booth at the Brown Stallion show at the Cuthbert Amphitheater tomorrow, Saturday August 10th. I will be selling my classic and more recent posters of said band mentioned(not) above that this band is covering. Life is wacky, so why not?  Maybe I'll see you there. Should be fun.

 

On sale tomorrow as part of the Los Angeles Hero Complex Gallery exhibition "Directed By...". A showing of posters inspired by movies created by various directors. 

 

I present to you my brand new 'The Shining, Grady Twins' poster!

 

You may remember that I used this image back in 2012 for a gig poster for a band in Singapore called 'Double Trouble'. I have always wanted to make a movie poster version of this image. With an invitation to take part in this exhibition in LA I'm now offering this as a movie poster of 'The Shining' by Stanley Kubrick. To me, it's one of the greatest horror films of all time and a personal favorite of mine. Since opting to make this new version of the image I've gone back into the separations and added more detail including polka dots to the girls dresses and a pattern on their stockings. I've also added Jack Nicholson's eyes in the title logo and wasps in the corner flowers in the border design, which was a visual symbol in the movie of Jack's growing anger and madness.

 

This poster measures 18"x 24" and is a 7 color screen print with glow on the dark ink creating skeletons of the Grady Twins as well as a hatchet with splatter across the logo when the lights go out.

 

The sale will go live tomorrow, Saturday August 10th at 10am PST online on the gallery's website. Best of luck scoring one! Thanks for taking a look!

 

https://hcgart.com/

 

20th anniversary Wishlist Foundation poster!!

 

Later in the month, on August 22nd I'll be appearing at the Wishlist Foundation pre-party event before the Pearl Jam concert in Missoula, Montana! I'll have some classic posters for sale, old and new and will be unveiling this brand new screen printed Wishlist poster that I will be signing in person! Stay tuned for the venue and more info very soon. 

 

Sad news...

 

I wanted to thank everyone that reached out after seeing my recent social media post about the loss of my sweet dog and family member, Ruby. She was a once a lifetime dog and the sweetest creature ever. She lived to a healthy and vibrant 10 years old and unfortunately passed away suddenly a few weeks ago. I miss her unconditional love and consistency in my life every day. So thank you very much for all of the kind words. Pets have very short lives but give us so much. They're a blessing in every way. I'm doing my best to keep my chin up and get through it. 

 

 

I hope you're all having a great summer. My next announcement will be very soon so stay tuned! Much love to all and hope to see some of you in Eugene or Montana! 

 

Best,

 

Justin  

New update time!
7 months ago – Fri, May 03, 2024 at 01:41:19 PM

Hey all, I wanted to give you a new update so here goes! The files for the book have been at the printer for a couple of months now and great progress is being made. I will preface this as this is the first book that I've ever produced and my first time working in Adobe Indesign to create it. That said, the printers have taken me to task on a litany of technical issues that needed resolved in the files. These are things that I would have only discovered in this phase of production and I'm beyond grateful that these issues were pointed out in such fine detail. These guys are the best of the best and they gave me a long list of things that needed to be, and have now been, fixed. They say the best learning comes from the actual process of doing and this could not be more true here. I've come so far since I started this journey with the idea of writing and creating a book of my own. Mark Lanegan was very encouraging in those early days as Anthony Bourdain was to him. Your support has been a huge encouragement as well. It's been one hell of a journey but now that things are all corrected and all the better for it, I'll finally be expecting my 'wet proof' of the book very soon. This is the final copy of the "wet off of the press" preview of the final book that I will be receiving from the printer.  Once I have it in my hands I will preview it to you all and if everything looks as good as it should it, it will be green-lit into full production! I'm very thankful for my printer for being so highly professional and detail oriented to bring you all the best possible product that it can be. Thanks for your great patience, it will be well worth the wait. 

Best,

Justin

Progress report and a preview of sorts as well as a new poster release
8 months ago – Thu, Mar 07, 2024 at 11:39:11 PM

Hey all,

It's been a little while so I thought it was time that I give you an update on the progress of the book. Things are going well with the book production. Half down has been paid to the printer a little while ago. There have been more than a few setbacks along the way but they've all been ironed out and everything is finally smooth sailing. Some day I'll write another book on the crazy amount of obstacles that I've encountered in getting this book out as it's a wild tale in itself. Thankfully that is all in the past and we’re on our way to the finish line!

Today I want to show you the absolute juggernaut that this book is going to be! The printer sent me a sample book which illustrates how the book will look in size, the exact interior paper, the hardcover, the dust jacket and the slipcase. Without any ink in the book it weighs 9 hulking pounds and the slipcase is 1 pound for a total weight of 10 lbs. For a size and weight comparison the 2004 book, The Art of Modern Rock weighs just over 7 lbs. My book a little taller but virtually the same dimensions. It's heavy and deluxe! Check out the video showing it off.

The next phase will come when I'm sent an actual printed sample of the fully finished book before it goes off into full production. That's coming very soon and I reeeeeally can't wait to finally hold that in my hands! I'll definitely be posting a video of that. Thanks to everyone for your patience. I'm getting very excited that we're getting close to finally having these finished and out to you all. Then I can finally and start planning art shows & signings around the country! I can't wait to meet everyone that has supported these efforts and collectors of mine new and old! I will finally be able to enjoy the fruits of all of the labor if you will. Maybe there will be a hard cider involved, these things have been known to happen! Haha! 

On a book related note, I have a new art print to show you that is one of the very last images to make it in the book before going off to press. I'm excited to finally get to show it off as well. Take a gander...

'Grave Beazlebum'

On sale this Friday, March 8th at 12 pm Noon PST

Edition: 100 copies
Size: 24"x 24"
Type: Giclee Print On Museum Quality Moab Entrada Cotton Rag 100lb Paper
Markings: Signed & Numbered by Justin Hampton & JH Logo Embossed

Purchase the print here!

This art print, reproduced from a new 4 foot by 4 foot painting, is my newly realized interpretation of my original artwork for the 2004 'Grey Album' by Danger Mouse. This is titled 'Grave Beazlebum'. This an homage to the classic 80's horror zombie movie 'Day of the Dead' and a metaphorical representation of where we've gotten to in the last two decades as a society.

For those not in the know, 20 years ago this February, the 'Grey Album' debuted. I created the artwork for the poster and vinyl album cover. Worldwide, people downloaded the art for their digital copies that they burned to disc and used it as the CD cover. It's the most truly viral phenomenon that I was ever a part of as it literally went global, it was everywhere. Every magazine, blog, social media site covered it and it even made primetime news.

The 'Grey Album' is a mashup album by Danger Mouse, released in 2004. It mixes an acappella version of rapper Jay-Z's The Black Album with samples exclusively from The Beatles' White Album, hence the name. The Grey Album quickly became a worldwide viral mega hit and gained infamy when EMI attempted to halt its distribution. Jay-Z and the two surviving Beatles, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr were impressed by the creativity and production of the album. EMI eventually dropped their lawsuit and hired DM. It was the most genius guerrilla marketing campaign that I've ever seen and been a part of.

Danger Mouse(Brian Burton) was super cool to work with and I met him the following year in LA(see the photo). He's a super cool and very talented guy. He's a force of nature. Since then he's worked with a litany of musicians including Gorillaz, MF Doom, CeeLo, Dave Mercer, Beck, Norah Jones, Black Keys, U2, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Karen O, Adele, ASAP Rocky and Black Thought. He's been nominated for 22 Grammy awards and won 6 of them. Brian gave me a great quote for my upcoming book, 'Visual Feast'.

Thanks for taking a look! The next update will come much sooner since we're finally in production mode. I do have an actual calendar schedule from the printer but I'm going to wait to make any announcements about dates until the books are being loaded on the damn boat! That is much closer than it's ever been and not far off at all... can I get a hallelujah people?! Hahah! Talk soon!

Until next time,

-Justin

Book Review Complete & A Preview of Chapter 1 of the Book!
11 months ago – Fri, Dec 22, 2023 at 02:55:49 PM

In case you missed my last update about the Visual Feast content review, you can read all about it here. I’m excited to share that the GAPP review is now complete. With one very minor edit, we should be all set on that front. The next step is the printer creating a prototype book for me to review. I'll be sharing that as soon as it arrives in my hands. Once that's signed off on, the book finally goes off to the full production run!

I know I keep mentioning it, but I can’t tell you how grateful I am for your continued patience and support. With Christmas coming up this weekend, I wanted to find a way to treat you all. So, without further ado, here’s a link to a preview chapter to start off your holiday weekend! 

Enjoy Chapter 1, 'The Early Days'. 

Click the link below and then use the password:  Visual_Feast_Preview_Dec_2023

 View preview here!

As always, if you have any questions about your pledge, please reach out to me via Kickstarter DM or email at [email protected].

Wishing you and yours a happy and relaxing holiday!

Best,

Justin Hampton

Well, the things we keep on learning.
11 months ago – Fri, Dec 08, 2023 at 04:17:21 PM

While I have been creating and printing posters for decades, there are aspects of book publishing that have been new learning experiences for me. Most all of modern book printing happens in China. Navigating the cultural and language differences is just the beginning of the fun. We seem to have navigated that well... so far, so slow… frustratingly slow. As you know the book design has been finished since June.

Now I just learned about a new speedbump along the way. Our printer in China has to submit all of the book content for review by something called GAPP (General Administration of Press and Publication). These are the people that check on content of books printed in China. Apparently, they are worried about subversive or objectionable content in the books that they print.

Seriously? What can they be worried about? Subversive and objectionable content in rock band art? That never happens. ;)

As of right now, we are waiting for about 2 weeks while they get that review done.

Want to know what happens when they find something that gets printed in China that they don’t like? This is what could happen: https://www.geeknative.com/65006/the-chinese-government-just-burned-every-copy-of-this-cthulhu-kickstarter/

I know you all want to get this book into your hands and have already been waiting for a while now. I want to get it done also, more than anything. This is 3 years of putting this together and my life’s work wrapped up in a binding. That said, I want to make sure it is done right without the books having to be destroyed.

I ask for your patience. In return, there is a special treat for you coming early next week.

Thank you very much.

Sincerely,

-Justin

p.s. If folks have not received any of their other rewards (PJ print, etc.) to please reach out to me at [email protected]