To help the Virginia Arts Festival celebrate its 25th Anniversary at a new venue, a new custom tent was needed. Tents LLC, of Frederick, Md., approached the Tukwila, Wash.-based Rainier Tent with a bold and creative idea for the Pat “Bunny” Perry Pavilion, a staple for the annual festival. Rainier’s graphic design team collaborated with the customer to design an abstract and inventive pattern that’s eye-catching from all angles of the tent.
The team began with three variations, stimulated by visual artist Pat Perry’s well-known Czech Republic style of glass molding artwork. Inspired by one of Perry’s most prominent pieces of artwork—a 6-foot-tall glass bunny—the design features a subtle outline of a bunny near the entrance of the tent.
The shape and design of the high spires and the “bat wing” overhang make this structure special. Rainier Tent produced the artwork, engineering and fabrication for more than 100 feet of coated vinyl to complete the existing engineering drawings. The fabrication process contained vinyl printing on a Durst Grand Format Printer, fabric cutting on a Plotter-Cutting machine and fabric sealing with an RF Welding machine.
This structure serves as a tribute to Pat Perry’s successful career in glass molding and a preeminent addition to the Virginia Arts Festival. The Perry tent will be available for public use after the festival.
Project name: Pat Perry Tent, Virginia Arts Festival
Design company: Rainier Industries, Tukwila, Wash.
Installation company: Tents LLC, Frederick, Md.
Fabric used: Duraskin B1515, by Serge Ferrari
Fabric manufacturer: Verseidag Seemee, Budd Lake, N.J