Guest Post: What is Flatstock? And how to do it up right! by Clinton Reno

Clinton Reno is an illustrator living in Columbus OH.

Flatstock is a 4-day convention during SXSW featuring many of the biggest names in concert poster art. There are a number of Flatstocks over the course of the year at different music festivals, but the one at SXSW is by far the biggest and as a result can be somewhat overwhelming.

So before going in, these are the few things you should know:

If you’re looking to buy some original, fine art celebrating your favorite bands and concerts then bring cash. Some places will take your credit cards, but as a general rule of thumb cash is king.

The API (the American Poster Institute), a non-profit organization that is dedicated to promoting the artists and the art form, puts on these flatstocks. Their booth is a great place to start. They’ll more than likely have a pamphlet listing every artist/studio and explain in better detail a little about the entire event.

Also, they should be selling tubes for 5 bucks- grab one early and fill it up with all sorts of poster goodness. Posters generally run about 20-30 bucks depending on the size of the print run, the artist and the availability. For these same reasons, some will run you more.

Walk the aisles before you drop any cash- maybe even twice. Take it all in. There’s a ton of amazing work, all of which appeals to a different aesthetic, or a different group of bands altogether. You’ll quickly figure out what artists or studios appeal to you individually.

Everything for sale is “official”, meaning it was contracted by the band, or by the promoter of an event to promote the show. And if you don’t find any concert posters that you want, but you love the art odds are good that the artists have art prints or cool t-shirts available- both of which generally have no affiliation with any band or event.

Talk to the artists, use it as an opportunity to get to know how they work or why they pick the bands they do. Every artist there is amazing but there are a few I personally think you should visit:

Hero Design
StrawberryLuna
Tara McPherson
Bobby Dixon
Cricket Press
Guy Burwell

Unfortunately I won’t be there this year- but feel free to check out my work here!

Here’s a full list of exhibitors and click here for the schedule.

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