Bob Masse: Concert Poster Artist Exraordinaire

It was March 2009, I was walking down the streets of downtown Baltimore when I saw it: sitting there in the window of a head shop-beautiful, colorful, psychedelic. It was perfect. "It", if you are wondering, was a retro print of a Bob Dylan/Paul Simon concert poster for the show at Meadows Music Theater in 1990. Well, I bought it of course. I had to (being the obsessive Paul Simon fan that I am). It wasn't until a few months later, however, that I noticed the small print on the bottom of the poster:BOB MASSE.

Bob Masse, it turns out, is "Canada's foremost rock poster artist" and a pioneer of the psychedelic art genre. (1) While searching through online collections I noticed a predominant theme of Art Nouveau influence. It is said that Bob's designs reflect his interest in the Art Nouveau movement and the work of Alphonse Mucha in particular. Similar techniques of the two artists include a brilliant color palette, fluid line-work, unique lettering, and intricate figures. Although Bob Masse is most widely attributed to music poster production, there was a break in the 1980's when Masse turned his focus to film posters. During this time, he worked for a variety of film projects including Total Recall and Back to the Future III. The switch did not last long, and the artist returned to his original medium the next decade. Masse has been producing posters since the 1960's and continues to produce for contemporary performers. Throughout his career, Mr. Masse has done work for many artists including Bob Dylan, The Doors, Grateful Dead, U2, Alanis Morissette, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Led Zeppelin.

Resources:
1) http://www.answers.com/topic/bob-masse
2) http://www.bmasse.com/who.html

Photos:
http://imagecache6.allposters.com/LRG/8/858/53DJ000Z.jpg
http://www.bmasse.com/Images/ledzep_LA_large.jpg