I have been working with the Blazers, thinking of a way to showcase historical jerseys at their practice facility. The jerseys have been showcased in displays of many different designs, and it’s quite interesting to see over the years how those designs have changed. Working with Craig and Bill, I knew they wanted a way to display the jerseys so they are more “real”, with a flow…not just pinned behind glass. We both thought of Arakawa immediately. Our first thoughts were of a jersey on a hanger in a display case, which we liked as a group, but in my mind, I knew there was a stronger solution.
I took that “hanger” idea to Arakawa. After lots of brainstorming, we came up with using a grid-type system versus the hanger. Not too bad, after all. You can see my preliminary drawing above. Design in hand, I met again with Craig and Bill at the Practice Facility, as well as with their designer and the contractor who would fabricate the case that needed to be built around our jersey display grid. We wanted three jerseys on the grid, each on different depths and levels within the case. The solution was to put tracks in the case.
We were all a little concerned about the size of the case, and how to access it for jersey changes or light fixture adjustments.
Brainstorming as a group provided the successful solution.
The designer and contractor came up with a great solution: two glass doors that swing outwards, and a middle glass pane that remains fixed. The weights at the bottom of the grid were not necessary to the stability of the grid, but instead lent an aesthetic of strength, balance, and integrity. Plus, they look really cool!
Brainstorming works!!
Chris Pero, Art Consultant