Steve Smith Autographed Prints

Few drummers have moved between rock and jazz as naturally as Steve Smith. Best known for his work with Journey and his own jazz fusion group Vital Information, Smith brings that lifetime of rhythmic thinking to Single-Flammed-Mill, created with graphic artists Anthony Burrill and Theo Hersey for Teenage Cancer Trust.

Smith joined Journey in the late 1970s, bringing his jazz-trained playing to the band during its most commercially successful period and appearing on albums including Escape and Frontiers. Away from Journey, his career has remained deeply rooted in jazz and fusion, both through Vital Information and collaborations with musicians including Jean-Luc Ponty, Mike Stern and Steps Ahead. In 2017, he was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Journey.

For this print, the starting point is the Single-Flammed-Mill, a drum rudiment built from a short sequence of strokes, accents and a flam. It's the kind of pattern normally understood through movement and sound, but here that rhythmic information becomes the artwork itself.

Burrill and Hersey reduce the rudiment to a sequence of L and R letterforms, representing the left and right hands of the drummer. Stretched, condensed and arranged across the page, the letters create their own visual rhythm. There's no illustration of Smith or a drum kit; the act of drumming is represented through the pattern a drummer would actually play.

The print has been hand-printed by letterpress on Shiro Echo 200gsm paper by Theo Hersey at The Typography Workshop in London. The process leaves subtle variations and texture in the black ink, particularly visible across the larger letterforms, giving the deliberately minimal design a physical quality that a perfectly uniform digital print wouldn't have.

Limited to 100 copies, each print is individually hand signed by Steve Smith and Anthony Burrill and supplied with a certificate of authenticity.

Product details

• Limited edition of 100
• Individually hand signed by Steve Smith and Anthony Burrill
• Single-Flammed-Mill drum rudiment
• Artwork by Anthony Burrill and Theo Hersey
• Hand-printed by letterpress on Shiro Echo 200gsm
• Printed by Theo Hersey at The Typography Workshop, London, 2025
• A2 print measuring 420 × 594mm
• Includes certificate of authenticity
• Commissioned and published by Teenage Cancer Trust
• Part of the ONE TWO THREE FOUR project, curated by Mike Dolbear
• Unframed

Huge thanks to Steve Smith, Mike Dolbear, Anthony Burrill, Theo Hersey and Fenner Paper for their generous support in bringing this project to life.

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 of the signatures may vary slightly from the product image.

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