When it came time to design a Halloween t-shirt for Easy Peasy Tees, we had to ask ourselves a question. How do we align this with the deeper meanings behind our other works?
Many Halloween t-shirts could be filed under a more generic category. We wanted something that spoke to the origins, meaning, and the true spirit of what this holiday is. I began by searching for references. In order to gain inspiration for our own design, I wanted to see if other artists had attempted to deconstruct the ideas behind Halloween. There… were none. None that I could find, anyway. It seemed as though it was now up to me to dissect this.
My research led me to the Gaelic festival known as Samhain (pronounced SOW-in or SAH-win). Samhain begins at sundown on October 31st and runs into November 1st, which marks the end of the harvest season in Autumn and the beginning of the darker half of the year or, perhaps, the spookier half. Records of the exact origin date can be a little hazy. The earliest written references date to around the 9th century, though it is likely far older. Some Neolithic passage tombs appear to align with the sunrise around the time of Samhain, which may suggest that farmers were reading solar cycles long before Samhain was documented.
The celebrations of Samhain consisted of large gatherings in which meetings were held, alcohol was drunk, feasts were had, and those gathered participated in various contests. Later accounts describe bonfires lit on hilltops, and some scholars, James Frazer among them, theorized that these fires were meant to be imitative of the Sun. The idea was that these rituals would hold back the darkness and decay of the winter season, among other beliefs.
Now, I won’t go into a deeper examination of this ancient festival, but I wanted to lead with a general understanding to segue into the shared traditions of modern-day Halloween.
I am sure that many of you know the term “All Hallows’ Eve,” so I won’t dive into that. What I want to connect is Halloween’s relation to Samhain. Some may think that over time Samhain simply became Halloween. It isn’t that straightforward. The celebrations do share a date and a variety of customs that spread across borders for centuries. Scholars such as John Rhys and James Frazer argued for a link between the two, though how direct that link is remains debated. What we know as Halloween owes itself more to Christianity and American consumerism.
Samhain is still a celebrated seasonal transition in Ireland, Scotland, Wales, the Isle of Man, and Cornwall, among others. These two holidays are not the same, but their history and shared connection deserve to be understood. If any of this has piqued your interest, I would highly suggest digging into it all for yourself.
To the design. As I stated earlier, I could not find any sort of design that showed the line between Samhain and Halloween. I wanted to show ‘Where Halloween Began.’ Through my research, the exact connection proved difficult to pin down, but nearly everything I read traced Halloween’s origins back to the ancient Celtic Festival of Samhain. So that’s the story I chose to tell. The first idea I had for this t-shirt was to create an homage to 1970s and 1980s Summer Camp t-shirts. This, I felt, was a strong way to maintain a childlike aesthetic while allowing me to explore a more adult-centric design. “Camp Samhain,” it said, arcing across a large, roaring bonfire. I presented this initial version to Laura-Lee, and together we decided upon removing the camp theme and leaning further into the bonfire aspect.
I found a unique flame-style typeface to manipulate and incorporate into the fire, creating a bold and eye-catching element that draws you in to examine the rest of the shirt. My favourite element is the moon phases. In place of a full moon, I incorporated a traditional jack-o-lantern to represent the shared history of Samhain and Halloween. Clever, clever. The remainder of the look was all about creating a certain aesthetic. In many of my designs, I aim for a graphic tee to complement an outfit while peeking out between an unzipped jacket. I envisioned Moms and Dads out trick-or-treating with their children, rocking a jean jacket with this shirt sparking intrigue from passersby. It presents an unmistakable Halloween aesthetic while separating itself from the usual pun-forward Halloween t-shirts (nothing wrong with a good pun).
My experience designing our Samhain t-shirt led to far more Halloween history education than I was expecting. But, when you’re working with a company that lends itself so intently to the world of parenting, school, and young children, you want your work to carry meaning. Design is so often more than just what looks good. It’s about weight. Our Purpose Tees help educate children on why our Awareness Days are important, while also providing tools for parents to bring that same education home. When it comes to our other tees, I always want to ensure that each design carries real depth to provide our customers with a sense of pride when wearing an Easy Peasy Tee.
https://easypeasytees.ca/collections/halloween
Written by the Artist - Kaleb Kaiser
