UC Berkeley TDPS 2018–19 Performance Season Art

The Department of Theater, Dance, and Performance Studies at the University of California, Berkeley, commissioned imagery advertising their 2018–19 performance season. The challenge was to capture each thematically diverse show, yet craft a cohesive look.

The posters are unified via palette, type choice (Ray Larabie’s Rakesly), and a consistent approach to illustrations: black and white vector art is paired with white details (rendered in ink and acrylic paint), stippling (ink), tone-on-tone transparencies (vector), and painted textures (watercolor). This standard execution made it possible to pursue bespoke concepts for each poster, yet maintain visual unity:

• "70 Scenes of Halloween" revolves around a couple who opts to stay in the discomfort of their home on Halloween night, where they are haunted by the monsters of their failing marriage. This inspired the illustration of a literally broken home.

• The comedy "Tartuffe" tells the story of a con man disguised as a pious spiritual leader; this inspired the disintegrating clerical collar corkscrewing into a cobra.

• "The House of the Spirits" is a magical realist family saga; the art was inspired by matriarch Clara, a seer whose journals keep the story—and lessons—of three generations alive, long after her death.

The art appeared in print and online — posters, flyers, programs, and social media-ready images were dispersed on the university's campus, the web, and beyond.