Cleveland, OH— An artistic portrayal of unity, the Cavaliers new 10-story banner entitled FOR THE LOVE, FOR THE LAND has been installed on the east exterior wall of the Sherwin-Williams global headquarters in downtown Cleveland. It is the current edition in a series of inspirational banners to occupy the space that has served as a community centerpiece to showcase artistic messages of celebration and motivation for the past 16 years.
As previously announced in mid-December when the design received unanimous approval from the Cleveland City Planning Commission, the banner art symbolizes a reflection of a community presented through a lens of diversity, inclusion and equity. It is an invitation, a rally cry, a call to action to embrace unity and come together in a common bond of love for each other and our city. Depicted with a diverse representation of hands on a basketball, the message speaks to the power of teamwork and how Cleveland’s passion for basketball and sports brings our community together.
To give voice to the spirt of the message, the Cavs produced a special video presentation of “For the Love, For The Land” that paints a compelling and artistic narrative from Ephraim Nehemiah that represents the great diversity of our community and the way inclusion and unity can resonate so deeply within it.
FOR THE LOVE FOR THE LAND was inspired by Cavaliers in-house graphic designer Jay Wallace who presented the original concept through sketches. Wallace along with the Cavs Creative Team worked with newly named Cavaliers Creative Director, Cleveland native and internationally celebrated artist Daniel Arsham to bring the piece to life.
The Cavs will also launch a special art project engaging with local organizations that touch diverse communities to create murals that represent their own interpretations of the For The Love, For The Land image.
The Cavaliers will provide stencils of the For The Love, For The Land art to youth and artists affiliated with the designated groups to customize a version of the banner that is reflective of the community they serve. Additional details regarding this extension of the banner into the community will be announced at a later date.
“Everyone who looks at For The Love, For The Land can translate the image in a way that is unique to their own personal experiences,” said Cavaliers CEO Len Komoroski. “Our desire is that through the mural project we encourage a dialogue with the hope that it inspires us to look at each other through a lens of understanding, care and support knowing that teamwork and unity result in greater success for everyone.”
FOR THE LOVE, FOR THE LAND
Banner Fast Facts:
- FOR THE LOVE, FOR THE LAND is the second Cavs banner and eighth overall banner (that includes the Nike LeBron James banner) to occupy the Sherwin-Williams Global HQ wall since 2005.
- Dimensions: 10 stories tall / 110’ tall x 210’ wide.
- Size: 25,000 square feet of material.
- Weight: 1.3 tons or 2,600 lbs.
- One of the largest wall banners in the U.S.A.
- A huge industrial printer running 33 hours fabricated 14 vinyl mesh panels, totaling 25,000 square feet of material, that were sewn together.
- It took a 10-person sewing crew 200 hours to transform the 14 panels into one giant banner.
- The completed banner was placed on a football-sized field for final inspection and prep.
- 300 total hours were spent creating, manufacturing, transporting and installing the banner.