- Create Awareness
- Live event
- 50' X 60' Refurbished Exhibit
Client
SHERWIN-WILLIAMS AUTOMOTIVE FINISHES
Services
- Design and Engineering
- Carpentry
- Metal Fabrication
- Graphics Production
- Interactive Production
- Logistics & On-site Operations
- Warehousing
- Video Production
Project Background
Sherwin-Williams Automotive Finishes, a global leader in the paints and coatings industry dedicated their 2019 SEMA show (Specialty Equipment Market Association) exhibit to the artistic talents of those who loyally use their products in both their professional and personal work and to establish a scholarship program to address the talent shortage facing the automotive industry.
The 50’ x 60’ exhibit space prominently displayed 30+ customized artwork panels created specifically for the show ranging in sizes from 18” x 30” up to a massive 96” tall, fully airbrushed and pinstriped by some of the industry’s biggest names. Joe Vincent, Nathan Curry, Michael “Buckwild” Ramirez, Javier Soto, Juan “Munch” Gonzalez, Steve Gibson and Jenn Mayberry painted the largest panels selling at the show to benefit the first Blazing Trails Scholarship fund.
The exhibit space also needed to traditionally highlight Sherwin-Williams’ multiple products and individual brands by providing a showcase for customized vehicles, artist demonstrations, and celebrity appearances.
Challenge
Communication Exhibits Inc. (CEI) accepted the challenge of refurbishing the previous year’s exhibit architecture into a full 360 art gallery, completed with a faux automotive paint booth feature below a centralized double deck structure. Several vintage vehicles and motorcycles needed also to be on display, all featuring the unique basecoat and paint finishes offered by the Sherwin-Williams Automotive brands.
Approach
Our Design team utilized the 20’ x 20’ deck structure as a dual-purpose meeting and gallery space. Gone were the rustic wood and corrugated paneling from the previous year that incorporated the stylings of a 1940’s engine shop. In its place was a dynamic, clean aesthetic of a modern-day paint booth making full use of the underpass directly below the deck structure. White wall finishes and LED lighting panels highlighted both the artwork on display and the dramatic basecoat finishes applied to a 1950s Mercury Coup.
Solution
The outer structure of the double deck was fully encased within a fiberglass I-beam and rustic metal paneling system in the previous year, was updated to a more modern metallic clad finish, along with plexiglass and painted features. A larger scale, fully painted I-beam element featured the entirety of the Sherwin-Williams brands represented within the booth, while upper sections of the structure featured nearly a dozen mid-sized artworks (30”x48”) suspended from chain link fencing. Vintage gooseneck barn lighting, specialty equipped with LED lighting, shined down on the full-size (59” x 96”) artist panels, including a special memorial honoring the memory of 24-year-old Larsen Motorsports driver Katrina “Kat” Moller, who sadly died during a jet dragster exhibition earlier that year.
Two large corner unit vignettes that resembled a working garage the previous year have been modified to become dual sided artist demonstration areas. Equipped with working, custom made barn doors with an antiqued finish, these vignettes are equipped with a special air filtration unit for use during the live demonstrations. The ability to close the doors helped control the safety and aesthetic of the exhibit when not in use.
“Attracting career-minded students and skilled professionals to pursue an education in automotive service and collision repair is key. Collision repair is becoming highly technical and there is a shortage of young talent entering the auto repair industry. Recruitment for the next generation of auto repair technicians is more important now than ever before.”
Rob Mowson , Vice President of MarketingResults
The Sherwin-Williams booth was a SEMA show stand-out that hosted edge-to-edge traffic for the full run of the show. The paint booth-themed deck provided the perfect backdrop for gleaming classic cars and high-end bikes with custom paint jobs. The metallic walls were decorated with artwork created by leading automotive paint masters, which were auctioned-off as part of the Sherwin-Williams Automotive Finishes Silent Art Auction. The proceeds – over $25,000! – were given to The Blazing Trails Scholarship Fund, providing the first-year recipient a full-year of tuition with four brand-new paint guns, and products from the automotive finish division of Sherwin-Williams were given to participating schools. The exhibit was honored with a GOLD award in the Best Stand 200-500 SQM category by the World Exhibition Stand Awards 2021, and by all client and attendee accounts, a visual and business success.
Leave A Longer Lasting Brand Impression And Generate Better Quality Leads
Request a Quote
