Franz Ferdinand Autographed Print

Franz Ferdinand arrived at the Royal Albert Hall on 5 April 2005 at an extraordinary point in their rise. Barely a year after the release of their debut album, they had a Mercury Prize behind them, Take Me Out had become one of the defining singles of the period, and the band were already looking towards what came next.

Their Teenage Cancer Trust appearance was Franz Ferdinand's first live show of 2005, with Graham Coxon, Kaiser Chiefs and The Magic Numbers completing a remarkable bill. Alongside tracks including Michael, The Dark of the Matinée, Take Me Out, Jacqueline and This Fire, the band used the show to introduce new material ahead of their second album, You Could Have It So Much Better, which followed later that year.

Created for the concert by Matt Cooper, the poster takes a suitably graphic approach. Blocks of black dominate the composition, broken apart by sharply folded shapes in yellow, orange, red and white. The forms overlap and change direction across the page, giving the design a sense of movement without relying on photographs of the band or conventional gig-poster imagery.

The typography is just as considered. Franz Ferdinand's name occupies the upper left in oversized white lettering, balanced by the night's complete line-up and concert details on the opposite side. There's something distinctly mid-2000s about the combination of bold geometry and stripped-back type, but it also fits particularly well with the visual identity surrounding Franz Ferdinand during their breakthrough years.

The concert itself captures a brief moment when several strands of British guitar music were converging. Franz Ferdinand were already established as headliners, while Kaiser Chiefs had released their debut album Employment only weeks earlier. Teenage Cancer Trust patron Roger Daltrey has since recalled seeing Kaiser Chiefs opening for Franz Ferdinand at these shows before their own rapid rise.

Printed by Prints of Thieves in Leeds, Cooper's design was produced as a seven-colour screen print on heavyweight 300gsm stock. The finished A2 edition is limited to 100 copies, each hand signed by Franz Ferdinand.

Product details

• Limited edition of 100
• Hand signed by Franz Ferdinand
• Created for Teenage Cancer Trust at the Royal Albert Hall, 5 April 2005
• Artwork by Matt Cooper
• Seven-colour screen print
• Printed on 300gsm stock
• A2, measuring 420 × 594mm
• Printed by Prints of Thieves in Leeds, UK
• Part of the Teenage Cancer Trust at the Royal Albert Hall music poster series
• Unframed

Every purchase supports Teenage Cancer Trust, helping provide specialist care and support to young people with cancer.

Please note:

As each print is individually hand signed, the position and size of the signatures may vary slightly from the product image.

International customers are responsible for any import fees or duties payable on delivery.