Influenced by the structural elements of grain elevator architecture, Omaha graphic designer Cathy Solarana chose the subordinate drive shed as her focus of exploration. Drive sheds had their own structural and functional personalities despite being dwarfed by the huge multi-barreled contiguous white concrete cylinders they served. Cathy Solarana believes good design comes from inside the project — one must understand the depth of something before it can be communicated to the world. This is why she begins each project with thoughtful research into what the brand stands for now, and what its hopes to communicate in the future. Through Cathy’s exploration into grain elevator structure, she created an iconic design style of a simple line and shape. Together with graphic bold colors the drive shed becomes the focal point, rather than a supplemental structure. The use of scale pays homage to its purpose. The giant wheat stalk stands as a representation of all the grains that have filled the silos and fed families, not just in consumables, but as an employer, customer, investor, and a vital commercial hub, for generations. The striped curve pattern in the background is an abstraction inspired by a hand forged silo in rural Nebraska from the 1930′s.
This work is part of Emerging Terrain's Stored Potential project, which began as a desire to re-purpose the grain elevator at 33rd and Vinton Streets. Emerging Terrain partnered with the elevator owners, city agencies, neighborhood associations and various community organizations to make the project happen. They solicited artists to submit designs addressing the themes of land use, food, and agriculture, a selection of which were printed on polyester mesh banners and installed on the exterior of the elevator silos. Up-lit at night, the banners were viewable to drivers passing on I-80, transforming the derelict structure into a super-size, drive-by art gallery. The project culminated with an outdoor dinner party for 500 people, all of whom were seated at an 800-foot-long table near the base of the installation.
