Elephant Eater Comics: some info here.

Neon Design Portfolio October 29, 2019 by Ryan Claytor

This post will serve as a collaborative neon design portfolio. All signs are designed by me (Ryan Claytor) and fabricated by Josh Goodacre of The Neon Shop, unless noted.

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The Claytor Arcade
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4’x8′ signboard, alternating animation.

This sign holds a special place in my heart for a number of reasons.  First, my wife and parents chipped in to fund the fabrication of this sign for my 40th birthday present.  It’s also the sign that I designed for our family’s home arcade.  Additionally, it’s the first sign that Josh Goodacre and I worked on together, the reason we met one another, and the catalyst for our professional relationship.  Finally, the central elephant eater symbol refers to a saying that my dad would tell me (and all my brothers and sisters for that matter), “Welp, it’s like eating an elephant; you just do it one bite at a time and before you know it you’re done.”  It’s a life philosophy that has served my family well.

For a more thorough documentation of our basement arcade renovation, click here.

 

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Queen’s Arcade
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4’x8′ signboard, alternating animation.

After seeing images of my sign posted online, Mike Queen contacted me to design a neon sign that would hang in his massive pole barn arcade.  Mike wanted a vintage Las Vegas feel with the retro stars and alternating animation.  We also gave Mike a custom color backer to match the color of his walls for a more seamless integration into his space.

For a process post documenting the design and fabrication of the Queen’s Arcade sign, click here.

 

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Twisted Pins
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3’x4′ signboard, no animation.

This sign was designed and fabricated for my good friend, Chris Travis of www.RockCustomPinball.com, who opened his own arcade in Wayland, MI.  Chris was originally going to produce this sign himself in LED lighting, figuring he could not afford a true neon sign.  However, without animated elements and designing toward a more standard sized sign and backer quality, we were able to stay within his budget and craft a unique piece of neon art.

For a post documenting the design of the Twisted Pins sign, click here.

 

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Kriesel’s Arcade
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3’x6′ signboard, alternating animation.

Dennis Kriesel from Kansas City, MO, is a man firmly entrenched in the pinball hobby.  He co-hosts the Eclectic Gamers Podcast and This Week in Pinball Podcast.  He’s also written a number of articles on pinball, its history, and investigative dives into it’s current play-makers.  In addition to all this, he owns a collection of games and has a love for retro space age graphics, which led us to his personalized neon sign with playful mid-century inspired lettering, a quintessential retro rocketship, all set on a backdrop of unexplored planets and twinkling stars.

For a process post documenting the design and fabrication of the Kriesel’s Arcade sign, click here.

 

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The Mathis Arcade
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2’x2.5′ signboard, no animation.

This was the first neon sign I ever designed.  It was a 40th birthday present for my good friend, Pete Mathis, who super-loves wolves.  His lovely wife, Julie, had the brilliant idea to surprise him with a celebratory neon and enlisted my help.  Until that point, custom-designed neon had never entered my mind as a possibility in life.  So, in a way, I owe this portfolio to Julie. After 5 years of coveting Pete’s glorious neon sign, and eventually completing our own basement renovation (which, coincidentally, coincided with my own 40th birthday), I finally designed a neon of my own.  This is the only neon sign in this portfolio that was not fabricated by Josh Goodacre of The Neon Shop.

Sadly, the fabricator of this sign, Neon Leon of Grand Rapids, MI, passed away in 2014.

 

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The Neon Shop
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3’x4′ signboard, 4-step animation.

Josh Goodacre, my neon collaborator, was in need of a logo for his business and I was happy to help.  Josh wanted to feature multiple font styles and a number of different neon colors to showcase what can be produced using this medium.  In addition to building his brand identity, this sign also serves as a veritable neon sample color palette he can use with clients moving forward.  While I designed this sign, Josh fabricated it, which is no easy task.  Just take a moment to admire the twists, turns and knots that were required (WITH GLASS!!?!) of this deceptively simple word.  Go ahead, give it a click to enlarge:

Masterfully done, Josh!

For a post documenting the design and fabrication process of The Neon Shop sign, click here.

 

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The Regal Beagle
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2’x3′ signboard, alternating animation.

This sign was commissioned by MASSIVE Three’s Company fans, Brad and Sandy Czernik. The frequented restaurant in the sitcom was named, “The Regal Beagle.”  The only setback in designing this sign based on the restaurant in the show was that a reference image of the restaurant exterior or signage was never filmed (because the restaurant didn’t exist, apart from the interior set), except for one brief clip in which a menu was shown:

Based on this low resolution clip alone, I designed and Josh fabricated this sign for whom we are certain are THE biggest Three’s Company fans on the planet.  Congratulations to the Czernik family on their unmatched neon!

Click here for a post documenting the process of how this sign was commissioned and created.

 

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Owen
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1.5’x2′ signboard, no animation.

Our youngest client to date (my son!) commissioned this sign from Josh and me.  He had some very specific ideas about what he wanted and he tells us we delivered his vision precisely.

For a post documenting the design and fabrication process of Owen’s sign, click here.

 

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Non-Personalized Gameroom Signs
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1.5′ x 2′ signboard, no animation.

 

21″ x 34″ signboard, no animation.

 

1.5′ x 3′ signboard, no animation.

These are made-to-order signs that are designed by me and fabricated by Josh Goodacre of The Neon Shop.  These are produced at a lower price point than our custom designs but still individually hand-crafted.

Click here for prices and ordering info, as well as behind-the-scenes process images for each sign.

 

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Welch Museum
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3′ x 4′ double-sided flag sign, no animation.

The Welch Museum is home to the historical society of Sunfield, MI, who commissioned us to create a double-sided flag sign for their business front.  They wanted a design that gave nods to their interest in preserving the town’s history while simultaneously complimenting their eclectic building front.

For a post documenting the design and fabrication process of the Welch Museum sign, click here.

 

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Godzilla Stomps Dallas
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6′ x 3′ signboard, alternating animation.

Clint Gilbert of Dallas, TX wanted a Godzilla neon sign for his gameroom.  But he didn’t want just any sign, he wanted Godzilla blasting the skyline of his hometown.  This commission resulted in the most complex and intricate design and fabrication job we’ve created to date with lots of credit going to Clint who, upon hearing a number of our suggestions, would not tell us no.

For a post documenting the design and fabrication process of the Clint’s Godzilla Stomps Dallas sign, click here.

 

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Wonderland
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3′ x 4′ signboard, blinking animation.

With a theme like the Wonderland arcade, this really gave us an opportunity for some fun, with whimsical lettering, a large character head, and our first use of blinking animation.

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Bagfoot’s Bluff
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4′ x 5′ signboard, 4-step animation.

Competitive pinball player and newly relocated woodsman, Andy Bagwell, commissioned us to do this fun and memorable piece for his home arcade in South Elgin, IL.

You can take a look behind the scenes of how this sign was created, right here.

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The Boyers
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4′ x 4.5′ signboard, alternating animation.

Jeff and Dianne Boyer commissioned this movie marquee and pinball inspired sign for their home gameroom.

Click here for a closer look at the process behind creating this sign.

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House Y’Ha-Nthlei
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4′ x 4′ signboard, alternating animation.

We never thought designing and fabricating a custom Cthulu neon sign would be something we could boast, but thanks to Lovecraft fan, Andy Morrow, now we can.

For a post documenting the process of creating the House Y’ha-nthlei sign, click here.

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