Poster Child: David Edward Byrd In Conversation with Co-Author Robert Von Goeben

Join renowned graphic artist David Edward Byrd and co-author Robert von Goeben in conversation. They will be discussing Poster Child: The Psychedelic Art & Technicolor Life of David Edward Byrd, a stunning retrospective on the art and stories behind one of rock ’n’ roll’s most influential artists. 

Beginning in the late 1960s, graphic artist David Edward Byrd pioneered the iconic visual styles that have come to define rock ’n’ roll graphics. Byrd created poster, concert, and album art for Jimi Hendrix, the Who, Lou Reed, Janis Joplin, Jefferson Airplane, Ravi Shankar, Traffic, Van Halen, the Grateful Dead, the 1969 Woodstock Festival, and KISS, among others. In fact, the 1968 poster that Byrd created for the Jimi Hendrix Experience was voted #8 in the Top 25 Rock Posters by Billboard. Beyond this, he created the iconic imagery for many Broadway shows, including Follies, Godspell, Jesus Christ Superstar, Little Shop of Horrors, and more.

Byrd is considered one of the foremost graphic artists of 20th-century pop culture, and yet, he has never achieved widespread name recognition. Poster Child shares the artwork of Byrd—including never-before-seen sketches of famous posters for celebrated musicians—with incredible accompanying anecdotes about his encounters with rock ’n’ roll legends, which combine to create a book that is sure to thrill music lovers and cultural connoisseurs alike for its visual vibrancy and storytelling.

$15 general, $10 members, $7 seniors/students

About the Artist & Author

David Edward Byrd is one of the world’s most renowned graphic artists. His acclaimed music art includes work for the Rolling Stones, the Who, and the Grateful Dead, as well as the original poster for the 1969 Woodstock festival. His 1968 poster for Jimi Hendrix is now in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York. He then moved on to Broadway, where he created iconic posters for Follies, Godspell, and Little Shop of Horrors, among others. He was later the art director for Advocate magazine and the senior illustrator at Warner Bros. Consumer Products for twelve years. He has had retrospective shows in Los Angeles, New York, Sarasota, and Seattle. Byrd lives in Los Angeles with his husband, Jolino Beserra, who is a celebrated mosaic artist, and their six four-legged street thugs.

Photograph courtesy of David Byrd.

About the Co-Author

Robert von Goeben has contributed to many publications, including Upside magazine, CNET, HotWired, the Good Men Project, and Bold Italic. He is the author of many books, ranging from lifestyle titles to children’s books. His recent book Deep Cuts is an offshoot of his popular trivia show. A music executive at Geffen Records in the ’90s, he then moved to San Francisco to become a successful investor and entrepreneur. Robert is a professor at the California College of the Arts in San Francisco.