Sonnenzimmer

Sonnenzimmer: Chicago’s DIY Printmaking Powerhouse

Nadine Nakanishi and Nick Butcher, owners of Sonnenzimmer screen-printing studio in Chicago’s Roscoe Village, were drawn to the art from a young age, and now create posters for bands like The Sea and Cake and Tokyo Police Club.

Dianogah

Dianogah: Dueling Basses and Melodic Distortions

On its most recent album, Chicago’s Dianogah ventures into harsher sounds, while simultaneously collaborating with local artists Andrew Bird and Stephanie Morris to incorporate melodic, subtle sounds.

Justin Santora / The Black Keys

Poster Art: Justin Santora’s “constructions”

Poster Art is a weekly column about today’s independent poster art and the artists who create it.

Based in the Chicagoland area, Justin Santora is an illustrator whose work focuses primarily on the themes of construction and disassembly, as well as “the pursuit for security and the desire for autonomy.” His perspective stems from the concept and process of “constructing something from the ground up” and an ongoing interest in subcultures.

Many of Santora’s illustrations focus on the reoccurring motifs of unfinished buildings, houses, and general architectural structure, while other poster designs simply hint at his love for animals. His pieces often include imagery of abandoned spaces and empty rooms that produce a sense of isolation, as well as despondence within human relations.  Additionally, his more recent works include a strong presence of light, shadows, and translucent, haunting human figures.
 

Justin Santora: "We Are a Collection of Screaming Jackasses"
Justin Santora: "We Are a Collection of Screaming Jackasses"

Poster Art: Dan Grzeca’s paint-inspired screen prints

Fifteen years ago, Chicago artist Dan Grzeca (pronounced Jet-sah) was painting.  It was the ’90s, and Bob Hartzell and Steve Walters of Screwball Press introduced him and a slew of other artists, including Jay Ryan, to screen printing — specifically, poster making.  “That’s one of the reasons Chicago has such a rich pool of talent,” Grzeca says.  “It’s very self-perpetuating with older artists inspiring and encouraging new, younger artists.”

Gallery Spotlight: The Post Family

Rod Hunting, Davey Sommers, Chad Kouri, Scott Thomas, Alex Fuller, Sam Rosen, and David Sieren are all brothers — yet their family is not unified by blood, but instead by kindred creative thread.

The seven initially met through school, work, and mutual friends, and it was their combined interest in design and their need to find a space to create that solidified their bond. This led them to start The Post Family collaborative, which set up shop at 1821 W. Hubbard St. in Chicago’s West Town neighborhood in 2007.