Alicia Zee
New Member
Hi sign makers! Alicia Zee here... sign painter in Los Angeles and as yet, new to this site. About me...
I am a second generation sign painter. Dad(deceased) & mom, stepdad, sister, brother-in-law, nephew, and many family friends are or were also sign painters. My sign career began at age 6, painting snowflakes on Xmas windows with my family, and from 17 to 21 I took the Sign Graphics(evening) course at LA Trade Tech(as seen in 'SignPainters:the movie'). Then, like many others, with the arrival of the plotter, by the early 90's I began to lose heart, finally leaving for the greener grass of the Netherlands where, after a few years of bumming around Europe, I was eventually employed as set painter for a theater where I then worked for 15 years. But after 20 or so years I missed my family and in 2008, moved back to LA. where I, for the most part, continued working as set painter, primarily on films, painting signs only when needed for a project that I was working on. I eventually began to tire of the L.A. film 'industry' scene and little-by-little began picking up the brush again and for the past 3 or 4 years, I can happily say that sign painting now makes up about 95% of my income(I still do the occasional set paint or faux finish for old clients). I am also thrilled to see so many new sign painters out there and that our trade may not be going the way of the lamplighter of switchboard operator after all! Furthermore, as of this month(July, 2018) I have conquered my plotterphobia and am now the proud owner of a pre-owned Roland Camm-1 Pro GX-300 ~ which I am presently trying to convince to obey me...with limited success. On the positive side, this has led me to this site where, hat in hand(not really...I don't actually wear hats very often) I hope to tap into some experienced minds for plotter advice, as well as just generally connect with others in this most wonderful of trades. Woohoo!
I am a second generation sign painter. Dad(deceased) & mom, stepdad, sister, brother-in-law, nephew, and many family friends are or were also sign painters. My sign career began at age 6, painting snowflakes on Xmas windows with my family, and from 17 to 21 I took the Sign Graphics(evening) course at LA Trade Tech(as seen in 'SignPainters:the movie'). Then, like many others, with the arrival of the plotter, by the early 90's I began to lose heart, finally leaving for the greener grass of the Netherlands where, after a few years of bumming around Europe, I was eventually employed as set painter for a theater where I then worked for 15 years. But after 20 or so years I missed my family and in 2008, moved back to LA. where I, for the most part, continued working as set painter, primarily on films, painting signs only when needed for a project that I was working on. I eventually began to tire of the L.A. film 'industry' scene and little-by-little began picking up the brush again and for the past 3 or 4 years, I can happily say that sign painting now makes up about 95% of my income(I still do the occasional set paint or faux finish for old clients). I am also thrilled to see so many new sign painters out there and that our trade may not be going the way of the lamplighter of switchboard operator after all! Furthermore, as of this month(July, 2018) I have conquered my plotterphobia and am now the proud owner of a pre-owned Roland Camm-1 Pro GX-300 ~ which I am presently trying to convince to obey me...with limited success. On the positive side, this has led me to this site where, hat in hand(not really...I don't actually wear hats very often) I hope to tap into some experienced minds for plotter advice, as well as just generally connect with others in this most wonderful of trades. Woohoo!
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