CR Blog

Scher's school project

Graphic Design, Illustration, Type / Typography

Posted by Patrick Burgoyne, 14 September 2010, 14:01    Permalink    Comments (15)

Photo: Ian Roberts

A pair of huge typographic murals by Pentagram's Paula Scher form the centrepiece of two new schools in Queens, New York

Photo: Ian Roberts

Scher has been working for some time on a series of large-scale map paintings and prints. Under the auspices of New York's Department of Cultural Affairs Percent for Art programme, which funds artists to create permanent public artworks in municipal buildings and spaces, Scher was commissioned to create the murals for the two schools of the Queens Metropolitan Campus in the city's Forest Hills area.

Photo: Ian Roberts

Each mural covers approximately 2,430 square feet. The first, shown here, is a map of the New York metropolitan region.

Scher's original painting (top) and the artist standing with it in the studio of Michael Imlay. Photos: Ian Roberts

Scher originally painted the map at an eight feet by six feet scale in three pieces. To enlarge the image for the mural, Scher worked with Michael Imlay, a painter based in Brooklyn.

Scher and Imlay with one of the boards that are pieced together to form the mural. Photo: Ian Roberts

At his studio, Imlay and his team projected the painting onto a series of panels and repainted the enlarged image. The finished mural consists of over 100 of these panels, some in odd sizes to fit into the atrium’s corners and around its windows and other fixtures.

Projecting the original image to be copied onto boards

Some of the finished boards for the mural. Photos: Ian Roberts

An exploded view of how the boards fit into the space

 


15 Comments

What about epilepsy? I personally like it, but wouldn't that make some people dizzy?
OCD
2010-09-14 14:58:00

Lovely. Your painting made me feel all funny. In a positive sort of way!
Hope all's well in NYC
barnaby hall
2010-09-14 15:06:10

No need for drugs for sure. a good promotion for a drug free America. You want stimulation? Stand in this space.
Carol Neiger
2010-09-14 15:48:40

Not sure...really....a taste of déjà vu > Keit haring PopArt Shop ?!

Cheers

Em
ETATmodern
2010-09-14 15:49:43

I keep on thinking of Matlow's Refreshers. Yum! Must pop to the newsagent to stock up.
Alison Bates
2010-09-14 16:15:23

Yeah nothing can be good unless its not a cause for epileptic seizures. Nice observation @OCD If we're so concerned about the epileptic or humanity for that matter, maybe it best we stopped driving entirely first.
Man Man
2010-09-14 16:29:55

saw abit about this piece when Scher spoke at the 4designers conference for students in New York earlier this year... its great to see it coming together it looks brilliant
rebecca greenhalgh
2010-09-14 18:18:02

Reminds me of refresher bar wrappers, it's great! Wish my school had this!
Stephen Ong
2010-09-14 23:29:34

Love it.
chris
2010-09-15 01:32:58

Its excellent, but definitely would make me feel dizzy. It makes me dizzy just looking at it here. It looks like it may have taken some time to create. I love the way so many bright colours are being used these days. I'm sure the primary colour family are most happy about this.
Bella
2010-09-15 13:20:45

Awesome
Lou
2010-09-15 18:19:25

Amazing! I wish my collage had the balls to do something like this, other than dull white walls. Right up my street.

http://www.dangorhamdesign.blogspot.com
Dan Gorham
2010-09-15 18:29:15

manifigue ...original
esma civcir
2010-09-16 07:20:37

I think it is really wonderful that some schools are willing to pour some funds into the creative hemisphere of art. In my old High School I was extremely upset when the school decided to paint white over old art wall murals. The education system can be a bit stifling sometimes. Having so much stimulation and color and expression dripping from the walls, I believe, can be that modicum of freedom that refreshes the students' spirits.
Jasmine Farahat
2010-09-24 02:18:36

Lots and lots of credit to Michael Imlay's team. There was definitely not enough information in the original painting to turn this into a complete, 3D, interlocking piece of work. But it seems as though he pulled it off! Congrats!
adam
2010-11-21 22:33:32

Tell us what you think

What happens with my feedback?

What happens with my feedback?

We no longer require you to register and have a password in order to comment, simply fill in the form below. All comments are moderated so you may experience a short delay before your comment appears. CR encourages comments to be short and to the point. As a general rule, they should not run longer than the original post. Comments should show a courteous regard for the presence of other voices in the discussion. We reserve the right to edit or delete comments that do not adhere to this standard.

Get the RSS Feed
Related subjects and keywords

Subject:

Graphic Design, Illustration, Type / Typography

Keywords:

Paula Scher

More like this

Articles:

PAULA+SCHER

25062

The CR iPad app
The Creative Review iPad app The Creative Review iPad app is here, with exclusive content and updates throughout each month for your viewing and reading pleasure...
NULL