The Bubble Process was conceived 10 years ago in the back of a classroom and finally birthed in 2006 after graduation, relocation, and four years of “weirdness.”
Sean Higgins and Nicholas Rezabek, sole creators and employees of the silkscreen-producing company, work together but apart — Higgins in Cleveland and Rezabek in Brooklyn. “We lucked out with the Internet, instant messaging, and the same time zone working for us, but the distance has at times become a major dilemma,” Higgins says.
Despite these challenges, the duo has been able to produce consistent, intricate, and vibrant illustrative work. The majority of the posters are drawn, designed, and silkscreened using a combination of pencil, pen, ink, or scratchboards.
The irony about this continuous handmade process is its transportation to and from the Midwest and the Northeast. “We transfer art between us digitally, each looking and adding to the poster by a compilation of many layers,” Higgins says.
“Throughout the process, we have learned each other’s strengths and capabilities, and that’s helped us to develop a style that represents each of us on every project.”
Higgins and Rezabek each grew up in Ohio and attended Kent State University, where they met while enrolled in a program for visual-communication design. The two have been inseparable — at least by technology — ever since.
“As life-long fans of music and each other’s strongest influence in both art and music choices, we have gravitated toward working with bands since the beginning,” Higgins says. Building relationships with Cleveland venues, according to the duo, has been thrilling and, with the support of the community, made The Bubble Process what it is today.
That’s a noteworthy achievement for “the weird guys in the back of the class.”
– Liza Rush
Poster Art is a biweekly column about today’s independent poster art and the artists who create it.