Bearden billboard attracts New York attention

It may not supply as much of a box-office boost as a rave review in the New York Times. But the Mint Museum Uptown's Romare Bearden show landed a spot in the Times' business section, and from the vantage point of a Charlotte cultural group, that still qualifies as big-city attention.

It was the advertising campaign devised by the Charlotte firm of BooneOakley that did the trick. The story's online version is headed by a photo of a Bearden double-image: In front of a billboard emblazoned with a Bearden artwork depicting three musicians, a flesh-and-blood trio is playing away.

It was an eye-catcher that BooneOakley and the Mint put into action near Bank of American Stadium on the day of a Panthers game.

"Art ... sometimes goes unnoticed," BooneOakley's David Oakley told the Times. "But we're trying to make it more part of the culture, and more three-dimensional and alive."

The billboard still comes alive on a BooneOakley video:

Bearden Outdoor LIVE from BooneOakley on Vimeo.