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Anniversary shirt design - Lynagh's Irish Pub - Lexington, KY

Lynagh’s Irish Pub / Lexington, KY

The staff at Lynagh’s Irish Pub were great to me for the few years we worked together. They hired me for some of my favorite apparel and concert poster projects. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic reducing all of our local gathering places to carry-out only in 2020, the owner Jeb was still looking ahead to the next year. He contracted me for an anniversary shirt design to commemorate Lynagh’s 40th year of service.

Anniversary shirt design diary

As usual, Jeb gave me one bullet point and let me run with it. He requested that I recreate the Lynagh’s storefront from a few photos he sent. Other than that, he gave me complete creative freedom. I rubbed my hands together and started sketching out the perfect apparel design for this special occasion.

Initially, I intended on featuring the storefront front and center. I would situate all of the other elements behind it on the anniversary shirt design. However, the building is not exactly very distinct, apart from the signs on top of the roof. I decided it would be more effective it were “contained” within a shield shaped frame. I made a very detailed drawing of the store, including the West Sixth Brewing neon sign in the window. The glass door opens to invite everyone in the friendly confines of the pub. I took some liberties with the illustration for artistic effect. Specifically, I enlarged the signs on the roof so they would stand out more within the shield. I needed to maximize the space on the art board. I also added a black “night sky” with stylized stars to help the sign pop more.

Finally, I laid out the shield and the heraldry. Outside the frame, I added a civic crown wrapping around either side in order to add a touch of class. I typed “40th Anniversary” in the Copperplate font, and then placed it into a double stacked banner in the center. To balance all of the elements out, I added a three leafed shamrock at the bottom, as well as a regal crown on top. The years 1981 and 2021 proudly display on either side of the crown, completing the anniversary shirt design.

Contact me today for your own commemorative apparel artwork

Does your business have an important milestone coming up? Let’s celebrate! Contact me today.

Rick Danko concert poster design (The Band) by Lexington, KY graphic designer

Lynagh’s Irish Pub | Lexington, KY

From 1981 to 2023, Lynagh’s Irish Pub hosted many local and national concerts here in Lexington. The owners commissioned me to create a series of posters to commemorate many of the famous acts they have hosted over the years. I created this Rick Danko concert poster design for one such act, the bassist of the legendary group The Band. He performed solo at Lynagh’s in 1999, just a few weeks before his untimely death.

Rick Danko concert poster, along with another event flyer I used the template for.

Rick Danko concert poster, framed along with another event flyer I used the template to create.

Rick Danko concert poster design story

I sought out to create a vintage style poster simulating screen printed art. First, I found a suitable photo with a creative commons license attached. I then simplified it down to just black, and cut out the elements of the background, leaving only Rick, his microphone, and bass in the shot. After that, I added a solid green shade back in behind Danko. This made the image pop out from the neutral background.

After laying out the focal image, I added all of the show information. As with many old school posters, the layout of the text blocks is important. Of course, I made the name of the headline artist the largest and set it in the heaviest weight. The supporting artists list in the accent color green, with a horizontal rule above it to further emphasize the headliner’s name. Varying weights of the same font create continuity, while still keeping the information distinct enough not to get lost. Finally, I reversed out the show date from a black block. The block containing the Lynagh’s logo balances it out at the top. I surrounded said logo with a celtic knot pattern on either side. This is a nod to the Irish theme of the bar.

Lynagh’s asked me to create a template from this Rick Danko concert poster design, which we would use for future events. Essentially, I can just replace the main photo, change the accent color, and the specific information. Thus far, I have used this for a handful of events and everyone loves them.

Like this Band poster artwork? Contact me for your own!

This Rick Danko concert poster design is one of my favorites. Do you need a graphic designer for your next event promotion? Contact me today!