posted
A couple of weeks back I was in my old hometown for a few days... where I first started in the sign business. I was young then, still a teenager, and I had so very much to learn. Not that that has changed much... but a lot of experience has been had in the interim.
My uncle passed me a business card of someone who wanted to talk with me, someone who was just starting in the business. I gave him a call and he set up a place for us to meet, where he had recently done some work.
I met him at the restarant and we were seated. It made me smile for we were parked right next to the first mural I had ever done. The painting was in good shape, like I had painted it yesterday... only it was dated 1976... 29 years ago.
And it was much worse than I had remembered... it was ghastly! I had done it with oneshot paints and a three inch brush. Paint runs still graced the wall. As I recall I had charged the fellow $150 and it had taken me less than two hours to pull off. From what I hear the owner still LOVES it.
The fellow meeting with me thought it was cool and admired the painting way too much. My thoughts were that it might look alright if they dimmed the lights a whole lot more.
I changed the subject in a hurry and had a great meeting with the fellow. And I had no trouble looking him in the eye, AWAY from the mural.
Sometimes its good to take a trip down memory lane and see just how far we have come in life. Thank goodnes!
Some things DO imoprove with age and experience... but not your past work.
-grampa dan
-------------------- Dan Sawatzky Imagination Corporation Yarrow, British Columbia dan@imaginationcorporation.com http://www.imaginationcorporation.com
Being a grampa is one of the the most wonderful things in the world!!! Posts: 8740 | From: Yarrow, B.C. Canada | Registered: Nov 1998
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Back before there was a "Rapid", I did some work on model planes for the annual Fun-Fly Event.
One of those customers returned this weekend and we spent this afternoon decking out his new RC boat. He'd brought a couple of pictures of a plane I did back in 1990 for him...boy oh man, did ever stink at lettering back then. Not a ssmooth line to be found anywhere...
Like you say, the old work never improves, but I still have some "oldies"in the portfolio. I've always felt that it's good to display how the quality of your work has progressed over time to your customers. It shows that your striving to improve your skills to better serve their needs.
Rapid
-------------------- Ray Rheaume Rapidfire Design 543 Brushwood Road North Haverhill, NH 03774 rapidfiredesign@hotmail.com 603-787-6803
I like my paint shaken, not stirred. Posts: 5648 | From: North Haverhill, New Hampshire | Registered: Apr 2003
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posted
Had a similar experience just last year. I was back in the town where I had attended college and had lunch at an old barbecue place that was popular when I was in school. It was now owned by the son but the eats were just like I remembered.
On the wall was a framed menu of prices from back in the early 60's. After a few minutes I realized why it looked so familiar - I had lettered it in exchange for some lunches for me and Jeanne.
That was 40 years ago and at the time I thought it looked pretty good, but with today's eye it was rather crude. And the prices for the barbecue then were so low! But at the time I was making 50 cents an hour - that's why the bartering for the menu, I couldn't afford to buy the lunches.
Of course, the son had no memory of me and his father had died a long time ago. Luckily, he passed on the secrets of his sauce to his son.
-------------------- Chapman Sign Studio Temple, Texas chapmanstudio@sbcglobal.net Posts: 6306 | From: Temple, Texas, USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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