There are signs, and then there are “Signs.” Sometimes, a flat rectangle with simple lettering – large enough, legible enough and economical enough, is sufficient.
But when more is demanded – a creation that not only provides information but also artistically and aesthetically enhances its surroundings – who you gonna call? Curt Oxford.
The Sebastian craftsman has made signs for Dodgertown – both when the Dodgers still had spring training in Vero Beach, later, when the facility was known as the Sports Village, and now, when it is known nostalgically as Historic Dodgertown; First Presbyterian in Vero Beach; Capt. Hiram’s; Ocean Pearl; the Sebastian Chamber of Commerce; Chill and Grill; Disney’s Vero Beach Resort and many others locally, nationally and internationally.
Born in California, Oxford has been a multi-media artist since his childhood in Idaho, where his memories are of a cold and magical place with mountains, rivers and lots of whitewater rafting. And of his Grandmother Anna, his artistic inspiration.
Young Oxford and his grandmother spent countless hours together, working with watercolors, punching and pushing flour dough into sculpted creations, and nurturing a creativity that would become a driving force throughout his life.
Childhood and Idaho behind him, Oxford headed east, to New York City, where he attended St. John’s University and worked as a cartoonist.
In 1979 he moved to Florida, settling in Sebastian five years later to work as a graphic designer. Always intrigued by the challenge of trying new media and new techniques, he began working with wood.
One of his first efforts, a headboard, caught the eye of a friend, who wanted to know whether he could make signs as well.
Why not?
And just like that was born the career that has made Oxford internationally known and highly respected throughout the industry.
“It was almost like a Renaissance for me,” he says of that pivotal time in his artistic career.
As Oxford’s outstanding signs began to generate more and more buzz, they began to pop up all over town. His work has appeared in top trade publications and been used to illustrate new Letterhead fonts.
Although Oxford remains a woodcarver, he works with other materials as well – aluminum, glass, resins – which allow him greater artistic flexibility, with less weight and more durability.
A particularly impressive and complex work – the Garden Grove subdivision entry sign – features hand-painted colors and multiple layers of automotive quality polyurethane.
Oxford emphasizes the dimension of letters and numbers with a router, often enhancing edges and lettering with contrasting colors.
Computer and printer technology allow him to create detailed multi-colored designs and to produce all his own vector work.
Depending on a client’s desires and budget, Oxford might embellish with gold leaf and other high-end materials and features, creating signs that can easily run four figures.
But he gets as much of a kick out of creating the illusion of dimension on a flat surface, for a more modest price but with just as distinctive an appearance.
“I like the challenge, pushing forward, figuring out how to make it look awesome, to look dimensional,” he says.
He also specializes in logos, illustrations, sculpture and other custom design work. He is currently working on a whimsical series of posters, each with a chicken theme, hilariously and displaying the techniques of such famous artists as Van Gogh, Dali and Liechtenstein.
“I’m doing a lot more design work [these days],” Oxford says. “I’m always moving in different directions. Art evolves, people evolve, as long as we’re learning. The brain is like a house with basic wiring. It isn’t used until you move in – start learning. We stagnate if we remain in one room.”
Oxford is in no danger of stagnating. He says he feels blessed there is little he has attempted to do that he has not been able to accomplish.
“I am very satisfied, very happy. I’ve had good projects through the years.”
Curt Oxford Graphic Arts & Design, Inc. is located at 634 High St, Sebastian, Florida 32958.
