MARC HARKNESS | DESIGN

Poster: Sarah Lee Guthrie and Johnny Irion in New York

2011-10-31T17:56:00.000-04:00

Poster, The Autumn Defense

2011-10-31T17:52:00.001-04:00

Poster: Vetiver

2011-10-31T17:49:00.000-04:00

Poster: Chatham County Line Electric Tour

2011-10-31T17:47:00.000-04:00

The Stick Mob: CD Cover

2011-10-31T17:44:00.000-04:00

Paper Cuts: The Art and Science of Rock Posters

2010-03-22T07:18:00.001-04:00

I'm going to be showing some of my posters at an exhibit this month. Here's the info:

Alexandria, Va | Paper Cuts: The Art and Science of Rock Posters will run from March 24 through April 25 at the Athenaeum in Old Town, Alexandria. Featuring a wide range of styles from a number of contemporary artists, the collection reflects the breadth and vitality of the DC Metropolitan area music scene.

To provide context to the art of these music posters, Paper Cuts will explore the science of the works by exhibiting artifacts from the process, including original drawings, sketches, studies, and printmaking ephemera. Additionally, the opening will feature live printmaking with Kristina Bilonick, where visitors can try their own hand at screenprinting!

Paper Cuts is organized by designer and printmaker Anthony Dihle, who also organized last year's poster show Paper Jam at Civilian Art Projects, which surveyed the work of two dozen East Coast based poster artists.

The opening reception is on March 28 from 4–6 pm. Regular gallery viewing hours are
Thursday, Friday, and Sunday from 12–4 pm and Saturday from 1–4 pm.

Paper Cuts will feature the work of 16 poster artists including Hero Design Studio, Jay Ryan, John Foster, Marc Harkness, Zach Bryan, Strawberryluna, Anthony Dihle, Todd Slater, Marq Spusta, Hatch Show Print, Dan Grzeca, Guy Burwell, Chris Cernoch, John Whitlock, Adam Saul, and Criminal Design.

Exhibition Dates: March 25–April 25, 2010
Opening Reception: Sunday, March 28, 4–6 pm
Location: Athenaeum, 201 Prince Street,
Alexandria, Va 22314

Tao Rodriguez-Seeger: CD Package and Poster

2010-03-17T14:00:00.001-04:00

Banana Monopoly at the Black Squirrel Poster

2010-03-10T18:09:00.000-05:00

Haiti Benefit Poster

2010-03-10T18:08:00.000-05:00

Cover shoot, Duke Law Magazine

2009-11-17T10:34:00.000-05:00

These are some images from my photoshoot yesterday with Josh Cogan. It was a great day for shooting, despite some initial friction with a Capitol cop who told us: "You're not breaking any laws. But if you're hanging around taking pictures of vehicles, there's some people that just don't like that. There is a man over there with a rifle that has been watching you. I can't tell you what to do. But if you continue to do this, we'll probably have to hold you for an hour and a half... and that would be no fun for you." So essentially he had no authority, but was harassing us because he could.

We just moved to a different part of the Capitol grounds and continued to shoot undisturbed. All images © Josh Cogan.

Illustration: Robinson Everett

2009-11-17T10:18:00.000-05:00

Portrait of Judge Robinson Everett for Duke Law School

Power Pirate: Band Logo

2009-11-17T10:15:00.000-05:00

I met Power Pirate a few months ago when they approached my friend, Sarah Massey, about doing P.R. for them. The remarkable thing here is that they're high-school kids. I think 15 years old. They take themselves and their music very seriously, and after going to one of their shows, I was taken by their work ethic and creativity. I designed this skull mark for them to make stickers and t-shirts. We're hand-screening the shirts tonight -- it should be fun!

Freak on a leash

2009-11-09T14:45:00.000-05:00

Been dreaming about birds

2009-10-27T13:49:00.001-04:00

I've been waking up the past few weeks and drawing birds for some reason. No specific species... just ones off the top of my head. Birds are in my dreams a lot. They would figure in the old Central American pottery and textile motifs that surrounded me in childhood, and laying awake in the early mornings looking at a rug or pot with a stylized bird on it, I could almost see them move.

Law School Downloads

2009-10-16T11:26:00.004-04:00

Law School Downloads is an e-commerce site aimed at providing law students with multimedia study aids. The site is designed to allow quick access to needed information for students who are strapped for time and under the deadline stress of law school or who need to study for various states' bar exams: there are various search matrices that allow browsing by subject, class year, and desired media type. Harkness Design developed an identity that would convey the technological ease of use and consumer focus of the site while nodding to the gravitas that is expected of the legal profession.

McMurtry Live LP/CD/DVD

2009-10-13T10:42:00.002-04:00

Today is the release date for the new James McMurtry "Live in Europe" CD/DVD, also available in LP. This was a challenging and fun package to work on -- mainly because our only available images to document this segment of his 2008 European tour came from the video stills.

DVD screen

Arlo Guthrie: Guthrie Family Tour

2009-05-04T17:15:00.006-04:00

Arlo Guthrie is taking his children and grandchildren out on tour this fall. Carrying on the legacy of Woody Guthrie, they represent four generations of Americana tradition in song. Harkness Design helped them develop a campaign of graphics for use in posters, online media and merchandise and apparel for the tour.

Tour T-shirt 1

Tour T-shirt 2, based on the poster.

Lecture poster: Joey Coleman at M.I.T.

2009-05-01T11:51:00.002-04:00

Migraine Graphic

2009-05-01T11:49:00.003-04:00

Work In Progress: Hive

2009-04-06T15:26:00.002-04:00

So that's what I look like when I'm working.

2009-02-13T17:38:00.003-05:00

I was on press in Durham, North Carolina, watching Duke Law Magazine rolling off of PBM's web press, when I started receiving text messages, then some emails, then some voice mails. When I finally checked them, I was informed that my picture had appeared rather prominently in the Washington Post's "Express" tabloid. Thank goodness, it was not for my parking tickets, or for jaywalking, as my mother first assumed when I told her I was in the paper, but as part of a report about Affinity Lab, the co-working space from which I run Harkness Design.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2009-02-13T17:32:00.005-05:00

These are a couple of Valentine's Day cards I designed for Jenni Finlay Promotions, to accompany a couple of love songs by Steve Poltz. One is sweet and tender, and the other, not so much.

Enjoy!

Duke Law Magazine Cover in progress

2009-01-21T17:04:00.005-05:00

I'm working towards finalizing the cover for this issue of the Duke Law School alumni magazine. We continue our set of illustrated covers with a black and white rendering of the new Star Commons, with the Sanford Center for Public Policy in the background. To continue the concept of the Law School's international reach, we follow with overlaid images of world cities receding into the background in a two-dimensional distance... Mumbai, London, Ryadh, Vienna, Dubai, etc.

Guthrie/Irion: Folksong CD/DVD

2009-01-15T09:57:00.002-05:00

Inspiration: A stop-motion animation using book covers.

2008-12-22T15:59:00.005-05:00

From 4th Estate, here is a really cool stop-motion video that uses book covers. Some of my favorite details here are the ones that elude you, like the hooker beckoning from a street corner, or the wino tugging at his bottle. Enjoy! http://vimeo.com/2295261

Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit

2008-12-16T11:38:00.004-05:00

This is the front cover for the upcoming album by Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit. Jason gained fame when he joined the Drive By Truckers, a band that redefined Southern Rock for the new century.

The illustration was painted by Browan Lollar, guitarist for the 400 Unit and an amazing illustrator in his own right. Fantastic photography by Allison V. Smith.

This is a gorgeous, soulful record, full of shimmering acoustic guitars on some tunes, snarling electric guitars and others, and Jason's righteous voice and clear-eyed lyrics tying it all together. My favorite songs right now are "Sunstroke", "Seven Mile Island," and "Soldiers Get Strange." Lots of nature imagery in the lyrics — water, stones, along with some intriguing characters and narrators in the songs.

The design challenge in this record was to find a way to put emphasis on the band. I developed a no-frills typographical arrangement for the name that could work in many ways across media, from silkscreening, to reversing out of Allison's lush photos, and stand up alongside illustration. I consciously avoided a traditional Americana typography for this one — this music calls for the listener to approach it with fresh eyes and fresh ears, and to not expect to hear it as grizzled country or Southern Rock.

Alejandro Escovedo Poster

2008-11-10T11:03:00.003-05:00

This was a commission from documentarian Mark Finkelpearl, who puts on intimate acoustic shows at the Mansion on O in Washington, D.C.

Banjo-Obama shirts now available on Cafe Press

2008-10-01T11:14:00.002-04:00

An alternative design from my Banjo Obama shirt series is now available on Cafe Press. Get it here!

Harkness Design Party -- Save the Date!

2008-09-24T14:34:00.005-04:00

Saturday, October 11 at Affinity Lab. Email me if you'd like to come!

Farm2Ranch Initiative

2008-09-13T19:42:00.003-04:00

Client: Compadre Records.

More turtleslugs

2008-09-10T17:05:00.003-04:00

Ok, I've updated the shirt. Here is the latest version of it. I think the typeface is more sporty, and i've been able to nod to the "turtle" part of the name. This piece should work well in two colors on a lime green shirt, and should be able to adapt to a banner for the van.

Ain't Goin' Down

2008-09-04T11:10:00.003-04:00

Hmm... I was looking through my archives for something else, and found this cover I did a few years ago and promptly forgot about, for a one-off band calling themselves the Saddlesores. This was back when "Brokeback Mountain" first came out. I'm rather fond of my typography on this one. Though some of the "don't touch my rope" jokes in the lyrics make me cringe... look for it on iTunes.

I think the rays of light emanating from the phallic saddle-horn just seals the deal... ya know?

Go Turtleslugs Go!

2008-08-27T16:13:00.002-04:00

This is a tank top in the works for my team in the upcoming Ragnar Relay Race. We call ourselves the Turtleslugs, and we're not really expecting to tear up the 200-mile course. But we'll have fun trying.

Cash Remixed Vinyl

2008-07-22T08:39:00.002-04:00

We're doing a vinyl version of the Johnny Cash Remixed album! Although I've done vinyl before, this is the first double-LP design I've done. It's nice to be working with 12 inches instead of five -- i'm trying to use the space amply and not crowd things too much. Plus I have some really cool old images of Johnny that I'm using to dramatic effect. I'll post the whole package here when it is back from the manufacturer.

The biggest challenge so far for the overall production was breaking up the track list to fit into the 18-minute chunks allowed by each side of a vinyl LP. At this point we had to start thinking of the album in terms of sides...

So anyways, here's a draft of the label for the vinyl LP. I should be shipping this to the printer today... very excited.

Lightning Rod Records

2008-07-16T18:21:00.004-04:00

Lightning Rod Records is a startup indie record label that is off to a great start — its first release, James McMurtry's Just Us Kids, held the Number One Americana Album spot in Rolling Stone magazine, and is a solid contender for Album of the Year at the Americana Music charts. Lightning Rod's founder, Logan Rogers, wanted to launch his new venture with a striking visual identity that signalled a new entity that was unafraid of putting out tough, edgy intelligent music — and ruffling a few feathers with its electric releases. Website here.

Obama "08 T-shirt/Poster

2008-06-28T20:03:00.005-04:00

Work in progress, adapted for a good cause from my Banjo Believer line of apparel. Available soon -- check back in to order yours!

Working on official portfolio

2008-06-28T08:55:00.002-04:00

Work on the official portfolio site is on hold at the moment as I go through a bounty of work, including the Johnny Cash Remixed website, vinyl releases for James McMurtry, and a set of t-shirts for the Obama presidential campaign. I will continue to post new work and works-in-progress here as I come up for air. Thank you for your continued comments and e-mails!

Cheers,

Marc

James McMurtry: Just Us Kids

2008-06-27T14:40:00.009-04:00

Just Us Kids is James McMurtry's first album for Lightning Rod Records, a fledgeling music label in Nashville. The record has gotten excellent press and critical acclaim, with its blazing political songs alternating with meditations on getting older, and its dry but compassionate studies of hard-bitten characters on the fringes of modern America. McMurtry is an impassioned lyricist and unique guitar player, and I highly recommend this album, and not just because I designed the art for it.

Buy it here from Amazon

Some extra shots of the packaging:

The Oui Oui Man

2008-06-27T14:32:00.000-04:00

Alternate art from an Aftertax vinyl release.

Amani Africa Poster

2008-06-26T11:57:00.006-04:00

Amani is the Swahili word for Peace. Amani Africa is a grassroots organization striving to establish sustainable peace in Central African post-conflict communities by engaging young leaders in cross-cultural dialogue and providing opportunities to orphans and street children through education and training.

I designed this poster for a fundraising event in New York City encouraging high school kids to donate to Amani Africa's efforts by "buying" chairs, desks, and even classrooms at Amani's new facility in Rwanda.

Cover for new issue of Duke Law Magazine

2008-06-25T14:46:00.000-04:00

Tour/gig poster for Sarah Lee Guthrie and Johnny Irion

2008-06-25T14:43:00.000-04:00

2008-06-25T14:37:00.001-04:00

This is the t-shirt design for an annual 20-kilometer race in Durham, North Carolina.

Johnny Cash Remixed CD package

2008-06-25T14:01:00.000-04:00

Client: Compadre Records / Music World Entertainment. This album will be released in October. More information plus a making-of video here.

"Remembering Brown" Lecture Poster

2008-06-25T13:56:00.000-04:00

I designed this for a lecture at Duke Law School. At times it's hard to believe that there was segregation in the U.S. even just 50 years ago.