By Marie Cascione
When you picture hippies, you
probably think of bell bottoms, long hair, and LSD. You might also think of a
very specific graphic design and illustration style, seen on concert posters
and album covers: curly, cloudy, barely legible lettering; trippy color
combinations; and decorative meandering borders.
This style was first conceived in
San Francisco by a handful of designers in the late 1960s. Their job? Make
posters for bands like The Byrds, the Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, Steve Miller
Band, Jimi Hendrix — all of whom were just getting their start, competing for
nightly stage time at venues like the Fillmore and the Avalon.
But these designers didn’t invent
that now-iconic style. In fact, they were heavily influenced by an art movement
that started in the late 1800s called Art Nouveau.
