Akashic Books, 120 pages, paperback, $22.95

This book is a reissue of Jay Ryan’s amazing first decade of silk-screened artwork and posters. Several essays serve as introductions of this version of the book with pieces from Steve Albini, Debra Parr, and more. But  these additions were not the things I liked best about the book.

What really made this book a quite enjoyable adventure was the overall aesthetic, layout, and information presented. The cool 9×9 square coffee table style presentation fit the project well.

Above all of my favorite aspects, however, was the information presented alongside each piece: artwork/commissioned piece name, year, size, number of screens used to create finished product, and more often than not a blurb or story to go along with the idea behind the artwork and/or Jay’s nostalgic stories about the events being promoted in the artwork.

My favorite poster? I’d have to say — although his main forte is animals and rock posters — Jay’s Columbia Crest Winery takes first prize for me. Not only does it show his artistic prowess, but he used 19 screens to create the damn thing! That’s intense! All for a full page wine ad. Wow.

Kudos to Jay for such amazing art, and a pat on the back for you if you already own this book!