This piece was inspired by Gallery1988’s tribute show dedicated to the Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL), for their 150th anniversary. The only problem was, I didn’t have any idea of what to do. I could do an illustration, but to be honest, I grew up reading books, and while I hardly do so anymore, I do believe they are what helped foster my vivid imagination. I wanted to do something meaningful, or more specific to the topic. It was suggested we could choose to illustration something of the public domain, but I wanted to create something a bit more substantial.
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| One of the (many) finalists in the sketching fervor that ensued during development |
I toiled aimlessly for a few days, maybe longer, trying to determine what would work for this project. I eventually decided that making a keepsake of sorts would be nice, so I went with creating another enamel pin. This would be my fourth venture into the (abhorrently expensive) field, so I had some experience. I knew that the sooner I had an idea, or solidified a design, the better as the manufacturing process takes weeks.
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| Final concept |
I started by first doing some research on the internet about the Los Angeles Public Library, including its history, and locations. I was surprised to see how many branches they had (72), and just how much of the population they serve. I was perhaps a bit too focused (initially), on the beauty and architecture of the (Richard J. Riordan) Central Library built in 1926 by Bertram Goodhue. The building is a landmark, but hardly the birthplace of LAPL. It did contain several design elements that were very attractive, but I ultimately settled on imagery that was more generic. It didn’t feel right to celebrate just the one branch visually, so instead I went in a different direction.
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I began my initial sketches on September 24th, 2022, spending two (2) hours, and thirty-eight (38) minutes on different concepts in Procreate. It took some time, and a lot of evolving before it got to the final stages around October 3rd. My concept was to have people ‘check-in’ at the library and ‘check-out’, some books. I had initially used a check symbol before utilizing the ‘check-in’ icon more formerly associated with technology. I then determined a book with LAPL as the title, and maybe the date of origin below to keep it very simple.
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| Teutonic Font founded in the same year as LAPL (1872) |
I also set about creating a backing for the pins and went with an old ‘library check-out card’(see below), like I recall from my youth (bringing that analog to the digital and vice versa). On it, I attempted to replicate a typewriter font, along with the date of the show, its title, and my name. The back part I wanted to highlight what the ‘cause’ was about and utilized my research to come up with some historical information about LAPL.
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| Yup, that's right, they were typed, stamped, AND handwritten on and lived in a little pocket in the book |
Once I finalized my concept, I decided the best color to go with on this pin was none at all. I wanted it to look more classical, or like an authentic collector’s item so I went with antique silver. I also wanted to have a limited run on this piece to celebrate the anniversary properly, in addition to having a proper backer made. I contacted my liaison with Alchemy Merch, and sent them my design, plus the additional details for my order.
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| Backer Design (front) |
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| Backer Design (back) |
The design process took me roughly twelve (12) hours from start to finish. In addition to the sketching above, six (6) hours were logged in Adobe Illustrator designing the pin, with three (3) hours more dedicated to the backer. In the design process I used Calibri Bold font for the card, and an old typewriter font for everything else. The LAPL font was inspired by a font available at the time LAPL was formed in 1872, called Teutonic.
Final product with backer.
The 1.5” x 1.26” antique silver pin was limited to a run of 150 in honor of LAPL’s 150th anniversary, as part of Gallery1988’s show ‘Required Reading'. The show was originally scheduled to run from December 9th, 2022, through December 23rd, 2022 with all remaining works available the following opening day at noon. At this time the pins are exclusively available via the gallery, so please check their website for all remaining works related to the show including mine.
For more information, or to see a catalog of my other work, please visit my online store here.
You can also find me on various social media platforms below doing a multitude of other artistic things that include hand lettering, and the occasional sculpting, crafting or painting.
Website: www.michaelstiles.com
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