I first noticed amazing signage in some of the older towns as we meandered our way up the Atlantic ICW. Colonial Williamsburg has quite a collection too, strongly supported by the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Collection. Clearly there is a quite a tradition in the US for making great art out of regular, everyday signs. So, I happily snapped away last year, amassing a collection of signage photos, as we bobbed our way up and down the Maine & New England coasts.
Perhaps the best I saw, as a whole district effort, was in the old dock area of Portland, ME. Maybe their interest in arty things is influenced by a nearby Art College and heaps of students about town (creative minds sporting colourful tattoos and body piercings). The historic dock area with cobbled streets and converted warehouses has quite an exhibition of signage and some thought-provoking street sculpture.
Whist I’m recommending Portland, we enjoyed a pint at Gritty’s then an excellent curry (the real thing – no relation to food hall atrocities) round the corner at Passage to India. Yum!
So, in all it was worth our while to "look up" as we walked the streets of Portlands historic port area. We recommend you do too!
