Hillel Smith

Happy Purim! It’s customary to give gifts of food to...

Fri, 22 Feb 2013 13:56:00 -0800

Happy Purim! It’s customary to give gifts of food to friends, called mishloach manot in Hebrew (or shalach manos in Yiddish). After stenciling mine last year, I designed my own boxes this year! Each is cut from a single sheet of card stock and folded, and uses no adhesives of any kind. Sad news for you: I already ate all the hamentashen.

I’m in a show!

Wed, 10 Oct 2012 09:39:30 -0700

I’m in a show!

I made this lulav and etrog superhero team to be silly at some...

Fri, 05 Oct 2012 16:03:15 -0700

I made this lulav and etrog superhero team to be silly at some point in high school. My parents thought it was the most brilliant thing they’d ever seen, encased it in plastic, and put it up in their sukkah every year. Apparently nothing I’ve done since can live up to Sukkot 2000 or 2001 (I forget).

Shana tova! Stencils are like the holidays, and life in general:...

Sun, 16 Sep 2012 12:59:00 -0700

Shana tova! Stencils are like the holidays, and life in general: you start with the same pieces and try to make each new iteration exciting and fulfilling. Best wishes on a happy, healthy, and meaningful Rosh Hashana and new year!

Them’s the rules. For my stencil-making classroom at camp....

Fri, 29 Jun 2012 11:05:00 -0700

Them’s the rules. For my stencil-making classroom at camp. (And also for life.) Big props to my awesome campers!

16” x 27”; spray painted stencil on a found wood shelf. Upcycle hooray!

Happy Mother’s Day! I made this card for my mom, but you...

Sat, 12 May 2012 21:40:00 -0700

Happy Mother’s Day! I made this card for my mom, but you can totally skimp out on putting in the effort and print this out for your mom too. And tell her I say hi.

In honor of Pesach/Passover, digital sketches of a planned...

Fri, 06 Apr 2012 06:50:00 -0700

In honor of Pesach/Passover, digital sketches of a planned series of 10 plagues posters. I usually start with basic sketches like these, figuring out color schemes, basic layouts and styles, and roughing out the subject matter. I plan on redrawing most of the imagery in a consistent style, and do something more interesting with the type, though I didn’t have time to finish before the holiday, and it could be a while before I get around to it. Chag sameach!

Helvetica Neue is boring. Helvetica Nu is awesome. Here’s...

Tue, 27 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0700

Helvetica Neue is boring. Helvetica Nu is awesome. Here’s the type sample.

Winged giraffe. I don’t get it either. Photoshop + boredom...

Sun, 25 Mar 2012 10:00:00 -0700

Winged giraffe. I don’t get it either. Photoshop + boredom = bizarrotown.

Flying space turtle!

Fri, 23 Mar 2012 09:00:05 -0700

Flying space turtle!

Spray paint stencil print on paper, playing around with the...

Thu, 22 Mar 2012 08:00:05 -0700

Spray paint stencil print on paper, playing around with the Hebrew letter Alef.

Hebrew typography fun time. This poster quotes a blessing that...

Mon, 12 Mar 2012 07:00:05 -0700

Hebrew typography fun time. This poster quotes a blessing that begins the morning prayer service:

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה ה׳ אֱלֹקֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם. אֲשֶׁר נָתַן לַשֶּׂכְויִ בִינָה לְהַבְחִין בֵּין יוֹם וּבֵין לָילְָה.

One translation of this blessing reads: “Blessed are you Lord our God, King of the universe, who gave the rooster understanding to distinguish between day and night.”

An explanation (and there are many) is that God created all creatures with certain abilities that collectively enable the world to function as it should.

The stencil I used to make the mishloach manot bags I posted...

Thu, 08 Mar 2012 07:00:06 -0800

The stencil I used to make the mishloach manot bags I posted yesterday. Happy Purim!

I stenciled paper bags this morning with a “Happy...

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 13:28:00 -0800

I stenciled paper bags this morning with a “Happy Purim” print. It’s a tradition on the the Jewish holiday of Purim (which starts Wednesday night) to give gifts of food called mishloach manot to friends. Who wants?

Hebrew typographic stencil poster of the Jewish prayer for wind...

Mon, 05 Mar 2012 12:39:00 -0800

Hebrew typographic stencil poster of the Jewish prayer for wind and rain, which is recited in daily prayer from the fall until Passover in the spring. It reads: מַשִּׁיב הָרוּחַ וּמוֹרִיד הַגָּשֶׁם (Mashiv ha-ruach u-morid ha-geshem) “May the wind blow and rain fall.”

More Hebrew typography, and also more stars. This poster quotes...

Fri, 02 Mar 2012 10:02:05 -0800

More Hebrew typography, and also more stars. This poster quotes God’s blessing to Abraham in Genesis 26:2—וְהִרְבֵּיתִי אֶת־זַרְעֲךָ כְּכֹוכְבֵי הַשָּׁמַיִם, ”And I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky.”

More Hebrew typography fun. This one illustrates a common...

Thu, 01 Mar 2012 11:52:00 -0800

More Hebrew typography fun. This one illustrates a common refrain seen in many prayers: אָבִינוּ שֶׁבַּשָּׁמַיִם, “avinu shebashamayim,” literally translated to “Our Father in Heaven.” (Yes, this is also the beginning of the Lord’s Prayer.)

Typographic poster illustrating Psalm 20:7 / תהלים כ:ח —...

Tue, 28 Feb 2012 18:00:00 -0800

Typographic poster illustrating Psalm 20:7 / תהלים כ:ח —

אֵלֶּה בָרֶכֶב וְאֵלֶּה בַסּוּסִים וַאֲנַחְנוּ בְּשֵׁם ה׳ אֱלֹקֵינוּ נַזְכִּיר

“Some trust in chariots, and some in horses (cavalry), but we keep our minds on the Lord.”

I’ve been doing some Hebrew typographic experiments. More coming.

Leon Trotsky, oh so Hotsky. 3-color screen print from 2006....

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 14:35:00 -0800

Leon Trotsky, oh so Hotsky. 3-color screen print from 2006. Apparently this is a meme now?

“The Future is Magic” for wizards are the future....

Sun, 05 Feb 2012 22:17:00 -0800

“The Future is Magic” for wizards are the future. Stencil on cardboard with vintage frame.