River Tattoo

Hello from Grand Rapids Michigan!  I'm here helping my brother-in-law, Jim Cogswell, install a BIG vinyl mural entitled RIVER TATTOO at the Eberhard Center on the downtown campus of Grand Valley State University (GVSU).  It is lovely here.  The Eberhard Center is facing the Grand River that flows thru the middle of Grand Rapids.  There is a wide inviting blue pedestrian bridge that crosses the river right next to where we are installing the mural.  Foot traffic on the bridge is constant so the mural will be seen by lots of people.  RIVER TATTOO  is hosted by GVSU Art Gallery under the direction of Henry Matthews and will be included in 2014 Art Prize.  The mural consists of 16 windows with a total measurement of 8 feet high by 86 feet long.  GVSU has provided us with a very capable and fun loving student assistant, Kate Pershon.  Best of all, Kate is 6' 1" and that is a boon when working with 5 foot tall strips of vinyl!

Today is day 4 of installation.  We have completed 4 of the 16 windows and have 4 others well underway.  Each window represents a multi step process.  The vinyl can be applied inside or outside, but because these windows are tinted we are applying it outside.  We started day 1 by washing the windows then wiping them down with a solvent to remove any remaining oils and finally a wipe down with denatured alcohol to remove remnants of the solvent.  Katie was also in charge of marking the middle of each window horizontally and vertically on the inside so Jim could site the placement of vinyl sections.  After this prep we were ready to start applying vinyl.    More on that process tomorrow....................

the blue pedestrian bridge

Katie washing windows

windows 1 thru 3 finished

windows 1 thru 8 in progress