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Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in Case Studies & Profiles
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Remembering the Holocaust and its Survivors at a Special United Nations Exhibit

Holocaust Remembrance Graphics by Presentation Graphics

Hersh and Eli Weingarten, owners of Presentation Graphics in Brooklyn (and father and son, respectively), have a very personal connection to the Holocaust. Hersh’s parents (Eli’s grandparents) survived the Holocaust, as well as Eli’s grandparents on his mother’s side.

Moreover, Hersh’s parents were saved from the most notorious Nazi death camps by Schindler’s famous list. So it was a great honor for the Weingartens to be involved in the creation of a new exhibit commemorating Holocaust Remembrance Day at United Nations headquarters, sponsored this year by March of the Living International.

March of the Living Exhibit by Presentation GraphicsThe exhibit focuses on the lives of those who survived the Holocaust, juxtaposing images from the Holocaust with recent photos and stories from survivors. One of the display panels, for instance, shows a photo of the barracks at Buchenwald concentration camp. Elie Wiesel, who would survive and go on to win a Nobel Peace Prize, is pictured in the second row from the bottom, seventh from the left, along with a more recent photo of Wiesel that stands off from the barracks photo (click on the photo to the right for a larger version).

“January 27 is Holocaust Remembrance Day; it’s the day when the Russians liberated Auschwitz. The UN always has some exhibit during this time connected to the Holocaust, and this year they gave the exhibit to March of the Living,” explains Eli. “We got involved with March of the Living through a designer we know in charge of the exhibit. It was a great project to work on, but this exhibit had a personal meaning to us as well.”

March of the Living ExhibitThough they had a strong personal connection to the exhibit, the Weingartens and the Presentation Graphics team put the same heart and soul they put into every print project. Celebrating its 15th anniversary in April, Presentation Graphics is described by Hersh as a “large-format boutique that’s very customized and builds very close relations with our customers.”

And this was a very customized exhibit that required a lot of attention to detail. Working closely with the designer, Presentation Graphics used LexJet 8 Mil Production Satin Photo Paper, laminated with LexJet Performance Matte Vinyl Laminate (3 Mil) to seal the images mounted on half-inch black boards that make up the bulk of the display.

UN Exhibit GraphicsSilicone-edge graphics were printed on a silk poplin material and used for the larger pieces in the center of the exhibit walls. Much of this was backed with LexJet Print-N-Stick Fabric applied to the walls of the exhibit to act as a background.

Eli estimates that they printed about 90 different pieces of varying sizes applied to five different walls that all came together into a cohesive whole.

“We consulted with Kara Work, our LexJet rep, on what to use, and she recommended a clear matte laminate, which we found to have superb quality and a beautiful look. For the walls, the UN was concerned about graphics leaving behind a residue and damaging the walls because they had a bad experience in the past, which is why Kara recommended Print-N-Stick,” says Eli. “The fabric look is classy and has a matte finish, which was important to us because we didn’t want the glare from the lights to detract from the message. The UN was happy with the Print-N-Stick solution because it was easy to move around during installation, and when they remove it in a month it won’t leave any residue or damage the walls.”

The exhibit officially opened on Jan. 28 with a reception featuring Israel’s ambassador to the UN, Ron Prosser, as the keynote speaker, and runs through the end of this month.

Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in Case Studies & Profiles
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Museum Wall Murals Made Simple

Triad Creative Group Produces Wall Murals for a Museum
Triad Creative Group printed historical wall murals on LexJet Simple Flo Wrap Vinyl laminated with LexJet Simple Flo Wrap Gloss UV Laminate. Triad applied subtle duotones to the images to complement the general color scheme of each exhibit.

 

Illustrating history can be tricky, but that’s why you leave it to consummate professionals like Triad Creative Group, Brookfield, Wis., which specializes in producing brilliant displays for museums and trade shows.

Museum Wall MuralTriad Creative Group won the bid to provide graphics for the Wade House Visitors Center and Carriage House shortly after the opening of the 38,000 square foot facility in Greenbush, Wis.

The specifications for the 18 wall murals depicting horse-drawn apparatus and their use throughout history originally called for prints produced with eco-solvent inks. Triad Creative Group took that specification to the next level with the purchase of an HP Designjet L26500 latex inkjet printer from LexJet.

“We had been in conversations with Kara Work [Triad’s LexJet customer specialist] about upgrading to the HP latex printer. I discussed latex-based prints on vinyl as a way to meet the specifications with our designers and this project pushed us toward purchasing the printer. It was such a huge job it virtually paid for the printer,” says John Toth, project manager for Triad Creative Group.

Museum Wall MuralsOnce the printer was selected, installed and ready to go, the next step was choosing the right material.

Toth was looking for something economical, that would image well and would be simple to work with at the installation site. Work recommended LexJet Simple Flo Wrap Vinyl laminated with LexJet Simple Flo Wrap Gloss UV Laminate.

“It’s a very nice material; it’s very forgiving on a multi-panel project like this. You need the ability to stick it down and pull it back up, which this allowed us to do with its air-egress liner. The color gamut and imagery looks incredible. All the archived photographs that we scanned and put into use with Simple Flo really popped,” says Toth.

Inkjet Printed Wall MuralsMost of the murals, which ranged from 8′ x 10′ to 12′ x 15′, were applied to wood frames with primed MDF faces offset from the wall, another was applied to Sintra and a few were applied directly to the walls. “The Simple Flo adhered beautifully to all the surfaces. It was also easy to trim, so I was very pleased with how it performed,” says Toth.

Mural application began in February and the rest were installed as the exhibits were finalized throughout the museum, with the final wall mural applied last week. It was essentially a year-long project as plans were made and Triad scanned and touched up the historical photos that would be used.

Donor Wall Graphics
The donor wall consists of LexJet Sunset Velvet Rag SUV applied to 6mm Sintra with 1/4″ glass stood off the image an inch. The glass has second-surface vinyl lettering. The portrait panel is Sunset Velvet Rag applied to Sintra.

“The photos weren’t in great condition, so we had to re-touch them in Photoshop. Depending on the location within the museum, each area has its own color designation. They’re all grayscale images, but a duotone was applied based on the color scheme of the area in which they were installed. The reddish ones, for instance, were tied to a firefighting theme,” explains Toth.

Triad also used LexJet Sunset Velvet Rag SUV for the donor wall that Toth says was a nice complement to the overall project.

“Kara was very helpful with finding the right media for this project. She is awesome, not just from the sales end, but from a technical support aspect. She’s very knowledgeable about media for different applications. She’s always been there for us,” adds Toth.