20 YEARS OF MASTERY

One of the early pioneers in the Australian moto graphics industry, Craig Pownall — founder, owner and manager OF Ringmaster Images to this day — has just clocked up 20 years of designing and producing graphics for Australian riders, working on a weekly basis with some of the biggest names of the sport all the way through to local riders.

Craig and the company have seen a lot of changes over the years, from the early days of doing everything by hand and screen-printing all graphics before moving into the digital age. In that time a new generation of moto graphic designers has flooded the market and it’s fair to say things are a lot different in 2017 from 1997 when the company started.

In his own words, Craig tells DIRT ACTION the story of Ringmaster Images.

IN THE BEGINNING

I had finished high school with straight As in graphic art, design and studio art but wasn’t able to get into TAFE or university at the time. Everything I was doing at school at that time was by hand, while the TAFE and uni positions were being filled by private schoolkids who had access to computers and had bigger portfolios.

It turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Spending three years working at Peter Stevens Motorcycles and having access to the bikes helped a lot with the early stages of tracing plastics and putting together early templates.

I spent about 10 months doing my own research and development, contacting companies over in America and all around the world,