The Phil Hanes Memorial

The Hanesbrands Theatre was built as the first of three multi-function theatres on the The Arts Council of Winston-Salem's campus. A brightly lit corridor running behind the seating features a mural commemorating the vast contributions of Philip Hanes, scion of one of Winston's most prominent families and tireless patron of local arts.

Philip Hanes was a stalwart benefactor of the arts in Winston-Salem throughout his lifetime, helping to position his home town as a “City of the Arts” over several decades. As a measure of gratitude for his work, The Arts Council commissioned a commemorative display recounting his dedication.
Still under construction at the time, the hallway identified by the Council offered a 20 foot span. The challenge was to create a graphic that was equally compelling and informative. It would be visible from the street running in front of the theatre.
Rather than compose a bookish timeline that carefully traced Mr. Hanes's lifespan, we planned to develop a design that departed from the expected. While there was no specific brand informing the conceptual development, the chosen paint color of the surrounding walls provided a baseline context for the exploratory.
The resulting design eschewed a conventional timeline reconstruction, instead highlighting a gerund-driven retrospective of his contributions. Major events and milestones in his life of service segment a monumental portrait, and offer snapshots of Hane's record advocating for the Winston-Salem arts community. As fate would have it, he died shortly after this piece was installed.
The milestone segments featured in the mural design were drawn from actual vintage photos of Phil Hanes's life. This included snapshots of him meeting with LBJ, strong-arming Joseph Hirshhorn (namesake of the Hirshhorn National Art Museum in DC), and strategizing with Terry Sanford, former governor of NC.
Mr. Hanes was able to see the completed mural at the grand opening of the Theatre and was deeply moved. He died less than a month later.