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A selection of works is on display at LaDivina Italian Cafe in Baton Rouge, Louisiana till January 13, 2025.

The Art of Handmade Signage

This project is a visual survey of hand-made commercial signage in Louisiana photographed over the last two decades. The work celebrates entrepreneurialism at its most elemental phase—the micro-business. In lieu of more costly plastic, printed, or metal signage, proprietors often turn to local (many self-taught) illustrators to execute texts and images necessary to promote their businesses. Cinder block, tin, or wooden buildings routinely serve as ready canvases. 

 

Many micro-business operate without benefit of website, social media, wifi, city "incubators," or conventional investments. As a practical matter, owners utilize their structures and vehicles to beckon street traffic. Signage with vibrant color pallets, bold images, and personal slogans are employed on any available surface.  

Statistically, nearly 50% of all start-ups in the US fail in the first year and 90% within 5 years. Their graphic designs, illustrations, and typography disappear along with the shuttered businesses. With each closure, walls are painted over, signage discarded, and a new enterprise follows. Many of the images in this survey no longer exist—ephemeral reminders of both optimism and economics.

The beauty of solo enterprise, start-ups, and micro-businesses is that they spring up with regularity. In a world of franchised landscapes, the handmade sign illustrates a humanity and the enduring dream of all entrepreneurs.

This work was made possible in part by a grant from the Louisiana Office of Cultural Development.

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