Signs of the Times - February 2014 - (Page 58)

WALLS OF FAME A gallery of wall- and window-wrap projects By Steve Aust W e've been conditioned to not think about walls, except those in our own homes. At best, they're regarded as dull, institutionally colored structures that merely support the roofs above us, and, at worst, they represent barriers between us and others. In Pink Floyd's The Wall, ex-frontman Roger Waters' ominous onscreen introspective about the protagonist's tragic, fatherless childhood and ultimate descent into madness, the movie and its namesake song present walls as symbols of isolation and conformity that reduce a man's spirit to nothing more substantial than cinder block. In world history, perhaps there was no symbol more representative of the divide between the free and the oppressed than the Berlin Wall. For nearly 30 years, it separated the democratic West Berlin from the communist East and served as a flashpoint of Cold War conflict between democratic nations and the Soviet-led Eastern Bloc. When democratic reforms swept through the Bloc, and the Wall was dismantled in 1989, it provided a catalyst for freedom's expansion. Today, walls need not serve such drab or dire purposes. In fact, they're a tabula rasa of opportunity. With the growing possibilities of perpetually evolving printing technology, and companion material and installationtool advancements, it's easy to bedeck walls with effective branding, or to dress them up to boost staff morale. Several service providers reveal their techniques for creating effective wall-cladding statements for diverse customers. 58 SIGNS OF THE TIMES February 2014 Looking Good in Pinstripes If you're even a casual fan of baseball, you understand the expansive legacy of the New York Yankees. The Bronx Bombers have won 27 World Championships, had 21 players and managers enshrined in Cooperstown, NY's Baseball Hall of Fame, and arguably captured the largest, most loyal following of any professional sports franchise worldwide (and, possibly, an equally large legion of detractors - ST Publisher/ Editor Wade Swormstedt, a Boston Red Sox loyalist, refers to them as The Evil Empire). The management of the Scranton/ Wilkes-Barre (PA) RailRiders, the Yankees' Triple-A minor-league affiliate, capitalized on their parent squad's legacy by having approximately 6,000 sq. ft. of graphics printed and installed on the walls of its newly constructed club suites.

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Signs of the Times - February 2014

Signs of the Times - February 2014
Contents
ST Update
Technology Update
Welcome to the 21st Century
Vinyl Apps
Strictly Electric
LED Update
Software Update
Technology Review: Cyrious online
Technology Review: Sign and Printmakers Guild
Sign Museum News
New Products
Walls of Fame
A Designer’s View of Health-care Signage
Health-care Signage: Care Required
Health-care Signage Trends
Estimating Software
Dynamic Digital Signage Made Simple, Part 2
Industry News
Advertising index
Editorially speaking

Signs of the Times - February 2014