CandyView #1 Is Xobni Trying to Provoke a (Mural) War with OpenCandy?
Last week, we got word via a TechCrunch article that Xobni recently installed a rather gigantic and comprehensive wall mural in their new office (which is Twitter’s old office by the way). The mural was done by San Francisco artist Jim Winters and he did a beautiful job. We love a great mural, which is why we have this one.
The Candyites standing in front of our mural after some heavy-duty frolfing
As far as the creative brains and brawn behind our mural, we had to look no further than our own multi-talented graphic designer, Jade Paris. When we rented more space in the building we’re in, Jade decided she wanted to spice the place up to better reflect OpenCandy culture (plain off-white walls just didn’t seem very “us”). She came up with the concept, sketched it out, taped the walls and painted the mural (some of her friends helped paint too).
Including Jade’s time, paying her friends for theirs and the material cost of a few buckets of paint, our mural was completed very inexpensively. At OpenCandy we keep it frugal (no bubble here) and the results are stunning nonetheless.
This is what Jade had to say about the ideas behind her design
The concept behind the mural is about breaking free from the pack. I wanted this mural to reflect the personality of our company. Everyone I work with is original, imaginative and definitely a little strange. They are the free-spirited candies breaking free from the pack and using their wrappers to guide them to something better. To me, the gumball machine represents the software universe. Usually, when someone puts a quarter into the machine they hope for a specific colour gumball, but most of the time they are given a different colour, leaving them unsatisfied. OpenCandy is breaking the gumball machine. We are offering more of the apps people want, and they don't have to put in another quarter to try them out. Turning the gumball machine into an amusement park is just how we operate. The slide is my way of saying we work off the beaten path and are escaping the conformity and restrictions of the gumball machine. Candy is more fun when it’s open and there are better ways to find and recommend apps.
Jade also provided some advice for the DIY mural creator in you
After the concept was completely drawn out, I transferred it onto the wall using a grid; in this case, 28 4’x4’ squares. The paint was done mostly with brushes but I used paint rulers for the larger parts (spray paint seemed like a dangerous idea because the room has poor ventilation). From the original concept to the final product, the mural took me about a month to complete. We are a busy startup so I could really only work on it in my free time. Preparation is the most tedious part of any project, but also the most important. Always be open for advice/criticism. Bite off more than you chew and love what you do.
So, Xobni – consider the ante upped – if it’s a mural war you want, then it’s a mural war you shall get. We even have our engineering team working on cloning Jade, so beware …
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