Today’s works of art is cleverly called The Returnable, and is by a contemporary Texas poster artist named Sam Yeates.

This poster was done for Lone Star beer in 1978, when the idea of the Space Shuttle being reusable was still novel concept. So the play on words for returnable bottles and spaceships is pretty clever, I’d say. According to his Past Works/Prints Available page, prints of the The Returnable are available for sale.

Here’s a short biography of Yeates from his website:

Born and raised in the Stephenville, Texas area, Yeates graduated from North Texas State University with a BFA in Drawing and Painting in 1974. After teaching at a private school in Dallas for about a year, Yeates moved to Austin and soon began working at the Armadillo World Headquarters, a music concert hall. Posters promoting shows followed and led to promotional art for Lone Star Beer during the 80’s. Through this medium, Yeates’ art traveled around the world. Through the years, he has continued to paint and show his work in the San Francisco, Dallas, Austin and Taos areas.

You can see more of Yeates’ work at his own website, along with the Cohen Rese Gallery and the Wilder Nightingale Fine Art Gallery.