Hohoho Poster

Three lines of brushed white letters spell HO HO HO across a deep claret ground, stacked so that each pair fills its own band. The strokes are made with a dry, loaded brush, so the edges break up and the red shows through in places rather than being covered cleanly. Letterforms are wide and slightly uneven, with the counters of the O shapes left open where the brush lifted. Scale does most of the work here, since the lettering runs almost edge to edge. It is loud in the best sense, and entirely free of tinsel.

Give it a wall of its own, because the lettering loses its force when it is squeezed between smaller frames. The claret reads well against white, warm grey or a deep green wall, and it will happily sit over a fireplace or a dining table. A black frame keeps the contrast hard, while oak takes the temperature down a little. It is seasonal without being literal, so it can stay up through the whole of winter.