Instagram photo by Cthulu • Oct 25, 2016 at 1:52pm UTC

In 2014 I didn’t know what I was going to do. I was sitting on hundreds of loose artefacts from an extinct culture of computer artists dating to nearly twenty years back, across several seemingly insurmountable technological sea changes, and I had a nice, round anniversary coming up. I knew I wanted to celebrate the 20th year since the establishment of Mistigris, but didn’t know what would be the most appropriate fashion. Sure I would exorcise and put to rest the lingering unreleased art files, saving them from their eternal torment of unfinished business, and I would gather what few of the old guard I could muster to provide some sort of witnessing to them – because surely no one else could possibly have any interest in it. But something strange happened. Instead of my going “Here, folks, I carried the torch for 16 years and kept these files alive long after you long since forgot ever creating them… I never did figure out a worthwhile application for them, sorry for letting you down” … the old crew said “hey, no need to look backwards in regret for this occasion… instead, let’s create some new art and look forwards in celebration!” (Those old files, incidentally, were ultimately vented as M-9808 and MIST2000.)

It had never really occurred to me that gathering old computer artists of 1994 and inviting them to make a new artpack in 2014 would be a viable undertaking… I thought, well, first let me get this textmode art gallery exhibition concept underway, and then if that sees progress wouldn’t it be fun to put on a little artpack theatre as a sideshow to it! But it turns out that all of the logistical and financial speed bumps of making things happen in the physical world are still in effect, while cyberspace is more frictionless than ever, and so since 2014 the tail has been wagging the dog.

I know, what does any of this have to do with this illustration? The logo we see is a marvel of typography by textmode calligrapher par excellence Mattmatthew of Blocktronics, formerly in another life our fellow traveller ts of teklordZ, with whom we crossed paths and collaborated more than a few times. When I began stirring the nostalgia pot and seeing what fumes rose up, he responded with this miracle logo, containing within it worlds and worlds within those worlds. If he believed enough in my vague aspiration to grab ahold of it and carry it forward to this amazing fever dream, I had a sacred charge to follow through and keep going… which brings us to the present. This new piece of work was the gas in our tank pushing us forward, an angel on our shoulder saying “I believe in you!”, and this Tumblr Mattmatthew set up an open road ahead asking where we wanted to proceed to. (THAT part we’re still feeling out; in the meantime, it’s a merry joyride.)

The logo is dedicated to the late Swedish ANSI artist BYM, who died shortly before the MIST1014 release date.

Instagram photo by Cthulu • Oct 25, 2016 at 1:52pm UTC

Instagram photo by Cthulu • Sep 11, 2016 at 9:07am UTC

Today on Mistigram, we celebrate this cursive ANSI art Mistigris logo generously drawn for us by Mattmatthew when he set up this very Mistfunk Tumblr site on our behalf (go on, look up at the header) on the occasion of reviving for our 20th anniversary in October of 2014 and … having things to say about it. With a beautiful letterhead like this at the top of your page, you’re almost protected from writing anything barbaric. (Almost!)

Instagram photo by Cthulu • Sep 11, 2016 at 9:07am UTC

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Today on Mistigram, a tiny, almost throwaway monochrome high-ASCII logo Blocktronics artist (and TeklordZ veteran) Mattmatthew tossed off to help us let people know our 20-year reunion artpack, MIST1014, had left the gates… nearly two years ago now. (He also put in a number of other necessary labours, up to and including setting up this very Tumblr to act as our most substantial pulpit.)

It wasn’t included in the artpack in question, but was quickly repurposed to act as FILE_ID.DIZ for the re-released “best-of Mistigris” Living Closet artdisk, finally being shared with a wider audience since its failed distribution on floppy diskette at an art party back in 1999

With a nip, a tuck and a tweak, the logo (the elegant “M” massive and masterfully designed, leaving plenty of room for almost occult ornamentation, the “Mistigris” perhaps the smallest possible rendition of the full group name in only two rows of characters) was also put to work extensively in the MIST2000 Treasure Hunt, including this colour-cycling variant reserved for the grand finale… which to this point perhaps no more than three people have ever seen.

Instagram photo by Cthulu • Jun 29, 2016 at 12:50pm UTC

Today’s blast from Mistigris’ long and illustrious past: this RIPscrip vector logo dates back to the hirez disk of our 3rd anniversary collection, MIST3YRB, from October 1997. It was drawn by ts of TeklordZ, a Hawaii-based group we’d long danced around attempting to join forces with (intended as one of the first stops of our Mistigris World Tour, it died just before we had a chance to trial-realise this ambition), now known better as mattmatthew of blocktronics.

For a decade now it’s represented Mistigris on its Wikipedia page after Sodium spruced the entry up with relevant artworks, so for most of the modern period this swell picture has been our primary representation to the world. You could certainly do worse!

Though the theory has been debunked, I like to imagine that the detail work on the surface of the letters represents the skyline of downtown Vancouver (the city that has been the traditional homebase of Mistigris) as seen from the West Side, with a backdrop of the North Shore mountains behind them. It’s a lie, but a nice one!

Instagram photo by Cthulu • Jun 29, 2016 at 12:50pm UTC