Portland’s Iconic St. John’s Theater Gains New Marquee

Originally built in 1928, this Portland, OR (aka “The City of Roses”) theatre was refurbished by hometown Ramsay Signs to emulate the original, but it had to conform to a modern sign code. Some venerable aspects were retained: open-faced pan letters, exposed neon (EGL 83 Designer White, Horizon Blue and P73 Novial Gold) and dimensional faces and outlines. The more modern components include 3M opaque vinyl, Wagner Zip-Change Zip track letters (“Seven Psychopaths” and “Argo”) on 3/16-in. Plexiglas® acrylic, Matthews paint and 800mA fluorescent bulbs. The aluminum frame was cut using a MultiCam CNC router and letter-coil machinery. Design software for the project included Gerber’s Omega Art Path, SA Intl.’s EnRoute and CorelDRAW!.