Service Graphics, the large format print division of the St Ives Group, has won the “Best Wide Format Print Project” award at the Sign & Digital UK Awards, which took place on the13th April 2011. Its “Through the Wall” project for National Museums Liverpool involved the creation of large scale murals being installed at the Arena and Convention Centre Liverpool (ACC), to draw attention to the city’s cultural treasures and venues.
Utilising a technique known as “trompe l’oeil”, the brief demanded that the large scale graphics gave the impression of looking through the wall into another space, revealing some of the city’s most treasured artifacts and objects. The end result has been so well received that the project has been extended to other Liverpool city centre locations including, Tate Liverpool, Liverpool ONE.
To create this very specific look and feel, the team selected to print the majority of the images onto self adhesive vinyl and then mount this onto 1mm Foamex. This provided a very thin print and smooth finish, and meant that the textured wall beneath would not show through and spoil the illusion. The illusion of seamless print was created by splitting the graphics into sections that could be butted together with a small image overlap that would cover the join.
However, not all of the walls were the same, which meant a variety of techniques had to be employed, Scott King, Sales Director at Service Graphics explains: “Some of the graphics had to be installed on walls with painted breeze blocks, which were not only heavily textured, but were also very exposed to light. We opted for a combination of foil coated Foamboard and Raffa Canvas, which together provided the perfect finish. We think the results speak for themselves and winning this award is a fantastic confirmation of that.”
Bill Watson, Head of Design at National Museums Liverpool added, “We are delighted that Service Graphics has been recognised and awarded for this project. They have proved to be an incredible source of advice and support, and have helped us solve some tricky problems, not least having to organise installation around some unexpected events, such as a General Election.”
