My signshop, Northport Woodsmiths, Northport, NY, fabricates a large portion of signs with the help of our CNC router from AXYZ Intl. Inc., Burlington, Ontario. As a result, I end up with a lot of leftover material. So, with the help of my artistic staff, the leftover patterns have been turned into fascinating sculptures.
What I’ve found is that many customers will buy these routed-out-scraps-turned-artwork. To house these art pieces and separate them from the shop’s sign work, I opened the Soma Gallery in the space above the shop.
For a recently held outdoor art exhibition at the gallery, we needed an outstanding sign to attract people into the courtyard. Ironically, signage was a last-minute job; the show was opening at 10 a.m., and it was already 9 a.m. So I had one hour to design and fabricate a great sign using the materials in my shop. Here’s how I did it.
9 a.m.
I know I can’t use the typical plastic A-frame or two sheets of plywood because this type of sign won’t work in our upscale community. A quick scan around the studio yields a 12-by-48-inch piece of 1-inch Komacel