Skoda Superb Ad Is a Work of Fine Art

MLADA BOLESLAV – September 15, 2008: As Škoda’s newest model is about to be unveiled in showrooms across the UK, we take a look at how the Czechs are celebrating the arrival of the New Superb at its birthplace in Mladá Boleslav.

Located about an hour’s drive from the capital Prague, this bustling Czech town has been at the heart of Škoda’s development for over a hundred years. With the design centre, factory and museum based here, Mladá Boleslav is Škoda’s nerve centre and every resident’s life is inevitably linked to the country’s greatest brand in some way.

This link could not be more real for a handful of local artists who come together ahead of Škoda’s anniversaries, campaigns and other landmarks for the sole purpose of creating the ultimate work of functional art.

In typical Central European fashion, a grey tower block overlooks the Škoda museum in Mladá Boleslav, reminding visitors of the brand’s less illustrious past. But in true Czech spirit, Škoda has managed to transform an ugly building wall into a blank canvas, turning it into a large-scale advertising mural.

The latest star to appear on the building wall is the New Superb, a car whose predecessor placed Škoda amongst the world’s most luxurious vehicle manufacturers when it launched in 1934. Today, a mural the height of four double-deckers stacked end-on-end depicting the latest Superb greets visitors to the museum. But how does Škoda produce its most unique billboard? Slowly and with great attention to detail:

SKETCHING: Once Škoda selects an advert design, it is enlarged to fit an area of 455m˛, the size of the tower block wall, and projected on paper for artists to copy. All lines and contours are then punched through to create small holes. The enormous sketch is finally cut up into squares of more manageable proportions, ready to be applied directly onto the building wall. This paper preparation process takes 10 days to complete.

WALL PREPARATION: The tower block wall is prepared ahead of the painting process. Preparation includes filling holes with cement and putty, smoothing out uneven edges and the application of two coats of white paint to help achieve clear and vibrant colours. Paper sketch squares are next attached to the wall, section by section, and dark powder applied to the punctured areas. The paper is then removed and artists transfer the sketch onto the building wall by connecting the dots created by powder before removing them entirely. Once all contours are transferred onto the wall, the painting process can begin.

PAINTING: Five painters carry out the painting, each one assigned to a different section of the wall. They spend nearly two weeks on the scaffolding getting up and down the 34-metre-high 17-storey façade several times a day in a staggering physical effort to apply 300kg of paint on the wall. The painting task also requires immense skill and precision as colours have to be continuously retouched to match the original sample. When the job is finished the scaffolding comes down and holes created by anchoring are filled up and painted over.

This lengthy production process, which takes nearly four weeks, may seem an unusual way to advertise a brand which has taken simplicity and functionality to a new level. It does, however, sit comfortably with Škoda’s ingenuity and belief that clever solutions can make a big difference.

The latest one of these is Twindoor, Škoda’s unique system for variable boot opening, which turns the New Superb from a saloon to a hatchback at the touch of a button.