About Us
What We DoWe create high-quality graphical prints that provide context to interesting subjects, time periods and events. Our work has won numerous design awards and is frequently cited in books, magazines and on the web. Most of our graphics are originals. A few designs are reproductions of restored antique graphics. Each graphic is created by integrating detailed content and data with a beautiful design. Our work is created with great care, objectively presenting accurate data derived from reliable sources.
Each original graphic is handcrafted over a long period of time. About half the time is devoted to research and data collection. After most of the data is collected we might try as many as a dozen rough designs before settling on a final design. Often the main issue is how to display the multi-variable data sets within an easy to follow and intriguing design. The final design is executed and a specific high-quality, archival paper is selected based on the paper color, weight and characteristics. Some of pieces are printed in small press runs on a Heidelberg offset press, others are printed using a high-quality print-on-demand printer.
Our Story
We started HistoryShots in 2003 in order to create a new type of information art that merged our interest in history, graphical representations, and big picture ideas. Our inspirations come from many diverse people and graphical works, but in particular the works of Charles Joseph Minard and Edward Tufte of Yale University stand out.
Our first two prints were created in parallel: Race to the Moon and the History of the Political Parties. Race to the Moon was an original design while the Political Parties was a reproduction of a 100 year-old graphic. Since then we’ve developed a number of other graphics including the History of the Confederate Army which won a prestigious design award from AIGA, the professional association for design.
Our goal is to build a large catalog of graphics that cover a wide range of topics. This is a long-term venture because the creation process is lengthy, but we enjoy the journey from raw idea to completed print. In addition to learning more about the subject matter, we learn more about information design with every new graphic we develop.
We believe the most elegant graphics have an interesting design, include complex data, tell a story, and educate and entertain the viewer. We hope you buy our prints, hang them on your walls, and share them with your friends. Thank you for visiting us.
Larry Gormley and Bill Younker
