Strawberryluna stumbles into success

‘ ‘ ‘ Poster artist Allison Glancey’s client list reads like a cool kid’s iPod ‘mdash; Tegan… ‘ ‘ ‘ Poster artist Allison Glancey’s client list reads like a cool kid’s iPod ‘mdash; Tegan and Sara, The National, Band of Horses, Rilo Kiley, Of Montreal, My Morning Jacket ‘mdash; just to name a few. ‘ ‘ ‘ Glancey, who goes by the name ‘Strawberryluna’ in the poster world and is a Pitt alumna, has the joyful vibe of someone who loves what she does. With such a repertoire, who wouldn’t? ‘ ‘ ‘ Artist Image Resource, located on the North Shore, is a nonprofit community print center ‘mdash; and also where Glancey creates her posters. ‘ ‘ ‘ The paint-splattered studio is Glancey’s home away from home. Upstairs, out of the comfort of air conditioning, is where the magic happens. Stacks of paper, paint cans and screens fill the shelves, and the walls are covered with pieces from various AIR artists.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘You never know what you’re going to see here. A print will be hanging for a few months, and one day it’s gone. Something new is hung up,’ said Glancey. ‘ ‘ ‘ A large rack of squeegees ‘mdash; a tool used to push paint through the silk screens ‘mdash; hangs on one wall. ‘ ‘ ‘ Glancey motions to them, ‘It’s rumored that some of those were actually from Andy Warhol’s factory. It’s so cool. I’ll be printing and think, ‘Who used this before me?” ‘ ‘ ‘ While perusing a poster art Web site, Glancey, who moved from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh in 1994, came across a recommendation for AIR. She quickly headed over and met Mike Buda, the man responsible for the only print training she’s ever received. ‘ ‘ ‘ Glancey’s original career plan didn’t include poster art. ‘I always thought poster art was cool. I really liked propaganda art … but I wanted to be a writer. Everyone in my family was super artistic, but I couldn’t paint. I thought that was the only kind of art form out there.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ Glancey received a degree in children’s literature from Pitt but remained unsure about what she wanted to pursue. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘I think so often you’re expected to know what you want to do and what to feel. That’s never the way it was for me. I didn’t know.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ It’s hard to imagine being a thriving artist without any technical training. Sometimes Glancey can’t believe it herself. She attributes her success to happenstance. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘It feels like a dream because I never planned it. I didn’t consciously try. I just kind of fell down a cliff, and here I am,’ she said. ‘ ‘ ‘ Glancey worked in human resources as her casual print work started catching eyes. In April of 2005, fellow artist Dave Mayer approached her to do a poster for the band Garbage. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘I got this opportunity and thought I’d be an idiot not to. It was terrifying just to get through it, but it was magical,’ she said. ‘ ‘ ‘ The rest is history. Glancey got hooked on making posters, which catapulted her to her success.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘I quit my [human resources] job in April of 2006. I intended to apply for a new one, but I put it off. I ended up selling a lot at the Renegade Craft Show that year, so I postponed applying for another month. And then September came around and I could still pay my bills. I was like, ‘I guess this is what freelancing is.” ‘ ‘ ‘ Poster art became a full-time gig for Glancey, and soon Strawberryluna was born. Where did the eclectic name come from? ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘I wish I had a better story for it, but I don’t. Originally, I needed a log-in name for a Web site, so I just kind of made it up. It stuck. I wanted to use it as my business name so I could have separation between my work and my life as an idiot. I guess when I first started I wasn’t confident. I signed everything as Strawberryluna,’ said Glancey. ‘ ‘ ‘ When asked about her interactions with some of the coolest bands around, Glancey explained, ‘It’s not as glamorous as you think,’ and that most correspondence is through e-mail or phone. Nonetheless, the opportunity to be in contact with big names is exciting. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘Okkervil River e-mailed me, and I was like, ‘Holy crap! How do you even know I exist?’ I still get those ‘what’s going on here?’ moments. They never get old,’ said Glancey. ‘ ‘ ‘ Sometimes, however, the chance to work for favorite bands is intimidating. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘It’s hard to do posters for artists you’ve liked for a really long time. You kind of choke under the pressure,’ she explained. ‘ ‘ ‘ So where does the inspiration for these posters originate? ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘I try to work from lyrics without being too obvious. I’ll listen to a song and see pictures.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ A Spoon poster hangs on the wall. It has an eerie quality to it ‘mdash; a few sets of glowing eyes peer out from a thickly wooded forest. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘Sometimes I match up the poster to the season of the concert,’ said Glancey. ‘That one was in October. Fall is my favorite.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ Glancey appreciates the opportunity to put her creative eye to use. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘It’s rare in this industry to have so much freedom,’ she said of the commands artists usually get from clients. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘Some of them will tell you what song to work with. Or they’ll say, ‘I definitely want a skull.’ But most are pretty open.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ In this digital age, it’s nice to see effort go into something handmade. After receiving an assignment and creating a sketch, Glancey creates the finalized image on the computer. The blueprint is printed out and transferred to screens before actual printing begins. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘The worst part of my job is when printing isn’t going well, but I have a deadline in nine hours,’ said Glancey. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ It’s easy to see how she could get frustrated. A job usually consists of around 100 posters ‘mdash; each layer of color done by hand. A three-color poster requires approximately 15 hours of work. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘I used to give up easily, but this has taught me perseverance. In printing, mistakes can always be fixed,’ she said. ‘ ‘ ‘ To those looking to pursue a creative career like Glancey’s, she says: ‘It’s way possible. Find your niche. Get used to feeling anxious and nervous all the time. It’s easy to limit yourself and think, ‘I can’t do this,’ but you have to just go for it and dive in.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ Students interested in learning about printmaking can visit AIR on Tuesday nights for open studio. For a few dollars, you’ll get lessons and be able to create your first print by the end of the night.