Profile: Juan Carlos Aguilar

I began painting signs in 1997, but my love for lettering began way before I ever painted a sign. I was introduced to lettering in 1986 through graffiti art and have been painting and manipulating letters ever since.

My interest in sign painting began when Mike Vasquez, a sign writer and fellow graffiti artist, told me about the Sign Graphics class at Los Angeles Trade Tech College. He told me it was a great course, and that I should go check it out and talk to the instructor. That was 1995. I was 22 years old.

One visit and I was hooked. I started painting signs shortly after finishing the course. Ralph “Doc” Guthrie was my instructor. He taught me the fundamentals of sign painting along with some important life skills and got me ready for the sign business.