Press Release – Royal Mint of Canada & Gary Taxali 2012 Coin Launch

Acclaimed artist collaborates with the Royal Mint
TORONTO, ON. – JANUARY 12, 2012 – Internationally celebrated contemporary visual artist and award-winning illustrator, Gary Taxali, recently appointed to the Stamp Advisory Committee for Canada Post, has collaborated with the Royal Canadian Mint to create a series of six celebratory coins to feature in their 2012 gift sets, covering the themes of Birthday, Wedding, Tooth Fairy, New Baby, O Canada, and Holiday (which will be released later this year).  ‬‪Taxali is known for his reinvention of pop art and iconography reminiscent of the 1930s with comparisons to pop culture masters like Keith Haring and Andy Warhol.  Fine art, pop culture and 1930s style iconography and graphics are intertwined in the unique retro style of the coins.The Taxali designed coins are a unique and marked departure from the Mint’s usual coin designs with a more edgy, vintage yet contemporary style.  Each coin is like a miniature collectible piece of Taxali art with the artist’s initials engraved on the coin that will excite Taxali fans worldwide.‪The coins feature Taxali’s recognizable pop culture imagery infused with his retro graphic vintage style.  The words “25 Cents”, “2012” and “Canada” are depicted on the coins in Gary’s famous font called “Chumply”, the first time the Mint has allowed an artist to change the typography on coins.

“The Mint is pleased to work with Gary Taxali on this year’s gift sets,” says Patrick Hadsipantelis, Vice President of Marketing and Communications at the Royal Canadian Mint. “His renowned artistry brings a new and unique twist to these special keepsakes which celebrate some of life’s great moments“.

The 2012 Royal Canadian Mint Gift Sets and Tooth Fairy Gift Card will be available for order from www.mint.ca on Tuesday, January 17, 2012 and shipping will begin in February 2012, at which time these products will also be available in the Mint’s boutiques (in Ottawa, Winnipeg and Vancouver), as well as through dealers and distributors including participating Canada Post outlets.

There will be a special press launch event showcasing the Taxali coins being hosted by the artist and Young and Rubicam at The Spoke Club on January 25, 2012 from 6 to 8 pm in Toronto, Ontario.

Special thanks to Remix, Maelle Designs, Young and Rubicam and We Bake In Heels for the The Spoke Club press launch event.

For more information on Gary Taxali, go to www.garytaxali.com and  www.taxali.com . For interviews and review copies, please contact Vandana Taxali at vandanat@rogers.com or 416.865.0800‬

‪About Gary Taxali:‬

‪Gary Taxali is an award-winning illustrator and fine artist.  Taxali is known for taking his unique characters, graphics, symbols and icons and intertwining them to produce works of fine art.  His signature pop culture works are infused with 1930s-style packaging, posters, typography and advertising with original and sophisticated characters and graphics onto distressed surfaces.‬

‪In addition to working for many clients in the advertising, design and editorial worlds, he devotes a portion of his time teaching and lecturing at various organizations and schools, including Danmarks Designskole (Copenhagen), Instituto Europeo Di Design (Rome) and OCAD University, where he is a faculty member.‬

He has won over 500 awards including a Gold Medal from The Society of Illustrators, and a National Gold Addy. He was shortlisted for a Cannes Lion and in 2009, he received a Grammy nomination for Best Package for Aimee Mann’s album” “@#%&*! Smilers”. ‬

His unique retro style has appeared on the covers of Newsweek, and he has clients as diverse as Rolling Stone, GQ, Esquire, Warner Brothers, Sony, and The New York Times. He lives and works in Toronto, Canada. Gary just released two books on his art entitled, “I Love You, OK?” published by teNeues and “Mono Taxali” published by 27_9. ‬

About the Royal Canadian Mint:

The Royal Canadian Mint is the Crown Corporation responsible for the minting and distribution of Canada’s circulation coins. An ISO 9001-2008 certified company, the Mint is recognized as one of the largest and most versatile mints in the world, offering a wide range of specialized, high quality coinage products and related services on an international scale. For more information on the Mint, its products and services, visit. .