Food Truck Art.. Supergraphics on the Go

A herd of Food Trucks.

The other day I was driving down the road when a large, brightly painted food truck turned into the intersection right in front of me.  I am used to seeing these monoliths herded together at festivals and local ‘food truck nights’.  Seeing one on a solo journey, up close and personal from my car window  momentarily took my breath away. After taking this class my vision is hardwired for seeing graphics in a new way. 

Artist: Laura Luo

Mardi Gras style

Throughout our reading we have seen graphic design evolve as new industries make their debut.  Food trucks have been around for a very long time, mostly as sterile aluminum coated vans, but recently they have flourished on a new level. Regionally infused, ethnically diverse, these cafeterias on wheels have to compete for eye share. 

Food truck fonts are seen in large scale, colors are bolder, and the business names need to be more intriguing.  Psychedelic, punk, Japanese modern, vernacular styles make food truck art truly postmodern. 

Artist: Landers Miller Design

As stated in Meggs' History of Graphic Design, the term supergraphics was coined to describe "bold geometric shapes of bright color, giant Helvetica lettering, and huge pictographs warping walls, bending corners, and flowing from the floor to the wall and across the ceiling.." "Psychological as well as decorative values were addressed, as designers created forms to enliven dismal institutional architecture.." The pedestrian, institutional look of the aluminum sided food truck has been elevated by these large scale applied graphics.

Street Sweets artists, Landers Miller Design, incorporated typography into the food truck art in the spirit of the facades of French patisseries.  Incorporating the concept of street maps, the design takes on a vernacular, Parisian flair.

In a reversal, one of my favorites, Curry Up Now, started out as a food truck and then opened a brick-and-mortar restaurant in San Mateo. Perhaps the food truck business is simply a trendy micro industry, or an extension of an existing corporate identity system. Either way it is an example of the ever-evolving call of commerce that design answers.
I wonder how Robert Venturi would design his own food truck. Oh, and there is even a food truck for dogs.

Resources:

http://www.chow.com/food-news/53005/8-best-food-truck-art-designs/

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Urban-Market/128414687202114  food truck row

https://www.facebook.com/foodfordogs/app_261761530599355 food truck for dogs

http://www.californiacartbuilder.com/  vernacular design Mardi Gras

The Place artist: Laura D. Luo

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