ERLANGER, KY – Perfetti Van Melle USA, local manufacturer and distributor of candies such as Airheads and Mentos, recently commissioned one in a series of ten murals that will reinterpret Cincinnati’s famous Winold Reiss Worker Murals. Installed February 8, 2017 at the Erlanger headquarters, the Perfetti Van Melle mural depicts the manufacturing process of the company’s famous Airheads.

Residents of Greater Cincinnati have come to know and love the iconic murals of artist Winold Reiss, which originally graced the walls of Cincinnati’s Union Terminal. These works can now be seen at the Cincinnati / Northern Kentucky International Airport and the Duke Energy Convention Center.

Mehmet Yuksek, CEO of Perfetti Van Melle USA, said, “We are so pleased to be a part of this amazing collaboration. Just as we are always innovating what confectionery can do, we are also happy to support this great artistic innovation. We feel certain the people of the Greater Cincinnati region will be happy to see this expansion and reinterpretation of their beloved murals.”

This contemporary reinterpretation of Reiss’ historic murals is a collaboration between artists Matt Lynch, Associate Professor at the University of Cincinnati College of Design, Art, Architecture and Planning (DAAP), and Curtis Goldstein, a DAAP alumnus, with support from Formica^® Corporation. The series reflects on the continuation and transformation of Greater Cincinnati manufacturing since the 1930s by portraying interiors of the region’s contemporary factories through the clean smooth quality of laminate donated by Formica Corporation. The project was initiated through the University of Cincinnati’s Third Century grant for its creative fields.

The project emerged through Lynch and Goldstein’s shared interest in modern-day manufacturing and repurposing man-made materials. Formica Corporation’s sponsorship of a UC art class in Spring 2014 revealed the possibilities with the iconic laminate. The contemporary digital fabrication technique of laser cutting made it possible to unify these elements into a project what will become a suite of at least ten 90” x 90” mosaics on wood panels.

The suite of mosaics is scheduled to be included in an exhibition at the Weston Art Gallery in Cincinnati during the Gallery’s Fall 2017–18 season. Meanwhile, the Perfetti Van Melle mural is proudly displayed in the entry of the company’s Erlanger headquarters.

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For more information about Perfetti van Melle USA, please visit www.perfettivanmelleusa.us.
For more information about Artist Matt Lynch, please visit http://www.simparch.org.
For more information about Artist Curtis Goldstein, please visit http://www.curtisgoldstein.com.