The Mighty Mitten is an artist owned & operated studio dedicated to expressing joy and passion for the state of Michigan, most notably through our ever expanding series of Michigan travel prints.
Each of our vintage-inspired scenes is lovingly hand crafted by Michigan artist Brian Walline as part of his modern take on the classic WPA-style popularized by the iconic imagery, bold colors, and nostalgic charm of the national parks posters of the 30s and 40s.
"People have deep and tender attachments to places, and my goal is to distill that sentiment so that when they walk by my work in their home or office they’re instantly connected back to that experience or the feeling of a special place and time." - Brian Walline
A Proud Michigander, Brian Walline is the owner and artist behind The Mighty Mitten.
Brian grew up in Saline, MI and spent his childhood summers in Frankfort and Charlevoix, with annual family camping trips to his family's roots in the U.P. He now lives and works in Ann Arbor, where he graduated from The University of Michigan with a B.F.A. in graphic design in 2004.
Brian has since created illustrations, packaging design, and branding solutions for organizations all over world, including projects for McGraw Hill, Wired Magazine UK, and Hertz. To see more of his other work, visit BrianWalline.com
Brian's other passions include distance running, snorkeling, writing, and spending time in nature.
Vintage Inspired: Our artwork is inspired by the timeless beauty and charm of the classic National Parks posters created as part of the The Works Progress Administration (WPA) of the 1930s.
The WPA was a New Deal program established to create jobs and promote economic recovery during the Great Depression. One of the initiatives of the WPA was to create posters promoting travel to the United States' national parks, forests, and monuments. These posters were created by artists and designers hired by the WPA, and their goal was to inspire Americans to visit these natural treasures and support the growing tourism industry.
Today, these vintage posters have become collectors' items, cherished for their iconic designs and nostalgic appeal.
Giclée (pronounced "zhee-clay") is a term used to describe fine art printing using pigment based, archival quality inks, manufactured on advanced, high-resolution inkjet printers.
Giclée printers use 10 different ink colors and print at up to 1200 dpi, which provides rich, vibrant color and much smoother gradient transitions to the final print. Pigment based inks are also much more durable compared to dye based inks, especially when applied to high quality archival art papers.
American Made: Our paper is manufactured in the USA and our prints are produced in the great state of Michigan.
Print Sizes: We sell our art in a variety of standard frame sizes, so you can always be sure there's an affordable frame readily available for your print.
Each of our open edition prints is made with a 1" white margin and is signed by the artist.
The dimensions are:
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5x7" (matted to 8x10", printed area = 5x7")
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11x14" (printed area = 9x12")
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16x20" (printed area = 14x18")
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18x24" (printed area = 16x22")
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24x36" (printed area = 22x34")
Need a different size or format? No problem!
Just let us know what you're looking for.
Framing: Since we make our prints fit standard frame sizes, you should have no problem finding an off-the-shelf frame at your local Meijer. For an extra wide variety, try Michael's.
However! Definitely consider your local frame shop. Not only will you be supporting local business, but the results are always superior. You can also get more creative with different mat colors and frame styles.
Buy Framed Prints? We are working on connecting with a framing partner that would allow us to sell already-framed prints directly to our customers, but this service is not yet available.
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