Collection of "San Francisco Style" Rock Posters

Collection of "San Francisco Style" Rock Posters

In the mid 1960s, rock art took center stage in San Francisco when artists such as Stanley Mouse and Rick Griffin created a distinct and novel graphic style of rock illustration. In 1967, Haight Street in San Francisco, with its closely lined Victorian buildings, became ground zero for the Summer of Love. Bands like the Grateful Dead lived in the area; many famous love-ins at nearby Golden Gate Park were attended by the likes of George Harrison. The San Francisco style was marked by Art Nouveau-influenced graphics, updated in bold psychedelic colors and peopled with amorphous lettering; California car culture also influenced these artists. The key promoters of psychedelic light-show concerts at the time were Bill Graham and Family Dog; frequent venues were the Avalon Ballroom and the Fillmore Auditorium. Many "British Invasion" groups of the period soon embraced this graphic style for their posters and album covers.

The nine posters in this lot are all individually mounted on cardboard or foam core board comprising the following titles: "The Rolling Stones Keep Moving the [Wold] with Ruby," "Bill Graham Presents/ Days on the Green #8 and #9 /The Who/ The Grateful Dead/ Sat Sun October 9 10 Oakland Stadium," design R Tuten; "Direct Productions Presents Crosby-Stills-Nash & Young/ Tues. June 16th Portland Coliseum," design R Tuten; "Bill Graham Presents in New York/ Jefferson Airplane /The Crazy World of Arthur Brown /The Joshua Light Show Fillmore East," fantasy unlimited (c) bill graham, n.y., no. 6; "Donovan," (c) 1967 paladin productions/ wendell ltd.; "Herman's Hermits/ We Must Avoid Holding On There Is Tomorrow," "One Sunday Afternoon Yardbirds Cherish Ol and the Fish Stand at Attention," "Byrds /Village Gate/ The Byrds is Coming," "Celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the Summer of Love Sat. Sept, 1987 10 A.M. to 6 P.M. Polo Fields, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco," litho by Tea Lautrec. Respective poster dimensions/condition: 20 x 14 (pinholes to edge), 17 1/2 x 15 (small stains lower corners), 17 x 14 (slight soiling upper right), 22 1/2 x 13 (small stain upper right), 20 x 13 (slightly marred), 20 x 14 (small stain left border), 20 x 14 (slightly marred), 20 x 14 (pinholes upper edge), 22 1/2 x 16 1/2 (surface scratches)