Sign Project: University New Tennis Center

Every project has its challenges, and this one was no exception. The University envisioned a large sign at the entrance of the Tennis Center to hang high above the gated facility. The sign is cast in painted aluminum, measures 200” wide by 15” tall, in Times New Roman font, with each letter thickness 3/8” and 7” tall. It was fabricated as a cabinet, constructed of 1.5” aluminum angle stud, mounted with a removable back, and painted in polyurethane with the University of Redlands maroon color.

On the installation day of this sign, a big piece of the fenced gate had been removed! Many phone calls later and with quick scheduling to get the missing piece of fence re-installed before our team could step back in to get the sign in its rightful place. Challenge conquered.

Two 18” x24” bronze cast plaques would be mounted at the right of the entrance to the tennis center. The top plaque featured a 3-D portrait of Coach Verdieck. This art form is called (bas-relief \bah-rih-LEEF/noun)

Pronounced bah-relief, the term originally stems from the Italian phrase “basso-relievo” which directly translates to low relief. Artists create a bas-relief by sculpting onto a 2D plane to create and accentuate figures and objects, producing a 3D appearance that can be viewed from all angles with little distortion.

Some of the earliest known bas-reliefs are on the walls of caves, perhaps 30,000 years ago. Petroglyphs—images pecked into the walls of caves or other rock surfaces, using shadowing and color, which helped accentuate the reliefs.

What is a Bronze Bas-Relief Portrait Plaque?

Bas relief is a sculpting style used to create three-dimensional figures raised above a flat background. These images are hand-sculpted by artisans using a photo you submit for reference. In this case, it was the smiling face of a well-loved Coach.

The bas-relief portrait was cast in bronze, approximately 6.68” x 10”. It was then attached to the precision tooled plaque. The second plaque was 18” x24” and cast with a leatherette with brushed onyx like the first one, and the letters were in bronze.

There are other options available for this type of plaque. Most are not as expensive or time-consuming. You might choose etched, photo relief, flat relief, or a UV print. All of these are durable and will last for many years.

The cast plaques, the etched plaques for the donor wall, and the max metal gold brushed aluminum composite for the benches were custom etched and needed to be shipped. The challenge of the plaques was weight. They are heavy and large and need to be shipped with protective materials, making the boxes even bigger.

Last-Minute Challenges

Another challenge was the donor wall. Most of the plaques had arrived and were installed by our team in time for the January ribbon-cutting ceremony. However, there were a few last-minute donors that the University wanted to recognize. But outsourcing it with an extended shipping time was not an option.

To make this happen, A&I printed on a material whose properties were very close to a bronze look-a-like. Although not etched, just printed with black ink, it became a perfect placeholder until we could receive the bronze plaques. Once again, our A&I team came together to save the day, allowing the additional donors to be recognized for the ribbon-cutting ceremony.

A&I printed twelve 10×10 white aluminum composite material (ACM) court signs with donor names and court numbers. A black backer was put on the fence sandwiched in between to attach these ACM signs with posts. A more prominent sign was printed for the training court. Twenty-eight bench signs were printed on white ACM using black text with donor names and quotes. These will be adhered to the benches with double-stick tape and silicone.