Yesterday was a big day in my world. About a week ago, I scheduled a pick-up with SGEU for "Premiere Van Lines" to come from Regina to pick up the painted panels...of the two murals for SGEU. I was just putting on the "finishing touches", so the firm date added a sense of urgency, you might say. Nothing like a deadline to get things done!
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| The friendly, professional Premiere Van Lines team arrived exactly on schedule. |
In a world full of "OK" so-called "professionals", the team of movers rolled in exactly on schedule. After I plied them with a quick coffee, we settled in to deconstruct the second mural, which was still affixed to the temporary frame.
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| A reminder of the first mural of two...while it was still mounted. |
By this time, I had already dismantled the first mural and had stacked it behind the temporary frame. The second mural was also finished and we needed to take it down to move it. I had mounted the panels with an absolute minimum of hardware, thinking ahead to the move.
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| The second (slightly larger) mural remained affixed to the frame until the day it was moved. |
It was fast and easy to dismantle the second mural...there were only 2 or 3 screws holding the panel in place. So, coffee sipped, we were ready to get down to business.
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| Al and Tanya agreed to pose for a quick snapshot, for posterity. |
I decided before the "Premiere VL" arrived to be conscientious about taking lots of photos of the process. I was happy that the team cheerfully agreed. This was an intense painting adventure for me, as I recognized right from the get-go that it is one of the most...if not THE most, important mural commissions in Saskatchewan this year. Remember, while the originals are destined to be permanently installed at SGEU's spanky new Headquarters in Regina...no mean feat in itself...but also, perhaps more important (in terms of high-profile visibility), the artwork will be dramatically enlarged to fully TWICE their original size and pressed into service as highway billboards at a "very high" traffic location. So, this...in the grand picture...is pretty astounding. You can rest assured that I will chronicling the whole trip!
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| Al wore his "The Art of Moving" shirt...very appropriate considering the task at hand! |
I was deeply impressed with Al's "The Art of Moving" sweat-shirt, very fitting, don't you think, considering the task at hand! I specifically asked him to pose with the slogan on his back. He cheerfully complied...which I thought was pretty darn cool.
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| The movers brought lots of blankets along to protect the precious cargo. |
I watched as Al and Tanya very methodically loaded and positioned each panel. They were very careful to make sure that there would be no issues with the panels getting scratched or damaged in any way. They thought ahead, and brought plenty of blankets to ensure a safe, uneventful trip.
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| I was really impressed with how extremely careful and respectful Al and Tanya were moving each panel. |
If you look carefully at the above photo, you will see that after the panels came down off their frame, they were never allowed to touch the ground, until they came to rest inside the truck. See? This panel is held free and clear of any contact with the gravel underfoot by being strategically positioned on the steel toes of each shoe under the left and right foot! Attention to detail much?
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| Tanya snapped a quick photo to show the dismantling in process. |
I thought it would be a nice touch to ask Tanya to snag a quick shot showing me wielding my cordless drill, in the act of dismantling a panel, down off its frame. Al helpfully stood by, holding the panel in place, lest it fall forward.
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| Al agreed to stand with me just prior to loading the final panel on-board. |
Just before they loaded and secured the last panel -the one on the far right of the second mural- into the truck, Al and I posed for one final picture. Thanks for doing this, Tanya! We made a special point to maintain the correct order of panels...in consideration of taking them of the truck for them to be photographed in Regina...with instructions to replicate the order upon arrival at SGEU. I reasoned, may as think ahead to avoid any mix-up down the line.
Now, if I was to grade the performance of both Al and Tanya from "Premiere Van Lines", I would reward them with a five out of five gold stars, without hesitation. One star for professionalism, another for friendliness, a third for promptness, four for respect, and a fifth for carefulness.
Stay tuned for the rest of this story. It's not over until the artwork reaches its final destination...out on Saskatchewan highways, blown up to twice this size and up in the air on their billboard infrastructure!
