When Joseph Giampino started sign + mural painting under the name Spclsigns, he set out to paint everything in the city of Raleigh in 5 years. Looking back now, he said he did it in 3.
You’ve probably seen some of his work all over Instagram — like the Love Respect Kindness mural that’s dripping down the side of Bay Six’s shop near the Warehouse District. You’ve also seen his sign painting work all over town, probably without even realizing it.
Joseph has hand-painted signs at local favorites like Union Special, Trophy Brewing Co., and Two Roosters Ice Cream. The sign work that usually graces the doors or windows of the businesses often appears so precise that it looks like stickers or decals.
Sign painting is a utilitarian art — both functional + aesthetically pleasing — and it’s been around for thousands of years.
“There’s a right way to do it, there’s a wrong way to do it,” Joseph said. “There’s no right way to do it, there’s no wrong way to do it. It’s just one of those things.”
After ~8 years working as a DJ, Joseph grew tired of the fast-paced lifestyle. Originally from NJ, he had come to NC to attend design school at UNCG. He’d always had a passion for artistic work, and transitioning to sign painting was a natural choice.
Joseph’s friend Lauren Ramirez, owner of jewelry shop Quercus Studios, needed a new sign for her store windows and asked him to do the job. He began researching sign painting, and went down a never-ending rabbit hole of learning tricks + techniques.
“I was like, this is what I want to do. I wanted every single book,” Joseph said. “I just painted and painted and taught myself how to swing a brush. Everyday I still learn how to paint signs.”
The projects that he does now are done in thirds, he said. A third of them are designs or artwork given to him by Raleigh designers, another third are people’s logos or branding, and the last third are his own designs. For all three types, he does the layouts and balances the actual spacing + size.
For the Love Kindness and Respect Mural, the Bay Six team told Joseph that they wanted those words on their wall. He drew the design out on a piece of paper + then tossed it on his iPad and colored it in and showed them.
The actual painting of the mural took only 2 days. It would have taken less, but pink + red paints are kind of a nightmare to work with, Joseph said.
He painted the piece (pictured below) on the front of Trophy Brewing Co.’s Morgan St. location during the pandemic last year. The saying — Together We Will See It Through — is from a company called Oxford Pennant (who Joseph reached out to about using the phrase).
The owners of Trophy Brewing asked him to paint it on their windows to lift people’s spirits during the tough times.
On the backside of the brewery, Joseph also helped paint the Power to the Patients mural (a Shepard Fairey design) alongside Raleigh artist Clark Hipolito. The design is being painted all over the country as a part of a national ad campaign to draw attention to healthcare prices.
The Pine State mural was done on the pool deck of Kane Realty’s new The Line Apartment complex in downtown. It references the Pine State Creamery company that existed in Raleigh during the 1900s, who’s building is now a Raleigh Historic Landmark.
Joseph went to the fairgrounds + flea markets to find old Pine State memorabilia, and used matchbooks and ads to draw the design he used for the mural. He also chose to have the mural say ice cream instead of milk because the mural is on the pool deck where people will be out in the hot sun and didn’t think milk would sound appealing.
This mural took him a day to draw out, and a day to paint.
Joseph has now been officially sign painting for 4 years, and he’s too busy for his own good, he said. But he’s never been happier.
“My personality has changed, the way I carry myself has changed. And a lot of it has to do with my wife and having a child,” Joseph said. “She’s helped me realize that there’s more important things in life.”
He also receives a lot of support from the Raleigh community for the work he’s doing.
“I’ve been building relationships with people that I never thought I’d be able to build,” he said. “I’m shaking hands with people I never thought I’d be able to shake hands with, and I’m stoked.”
A big part of Joseph’s life is giving that same support to his peers + friends in the local art scene.
“I surround myself with people that consider art their life,” he said. “There’s so many talented people here.”
Joseph named a few in his interview with us — sculptor Matt Byrd, goldsmith Lauren Ramirez, knifemaker Duncan Stevenson, woodworker Brian Chiarizia, neon artist Nate Sheaffer, neon artist Daniele, drummer Nick Baglio, and salsa dancer Juan.
Next up, Joseph wants to find big Coca Cola + Pepsi Cola restoration projects.
“Every single day I get up, and my job is different,” he said, noting that at the end DJing had become monotonous. “I’m really excited and really happy.”
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