If you drive down Santa Monica Boulevard past the shared facade of Mameg and Maison Martin Margiela – two Beverly Hills fashion boutiques – you’ll likely remember it after raising an eyebrow at the sexy, sequined exterior (prior to memorizing the exact alliteration).

Air Display at the Maison Martin Margiela store in Santa Monica, California. Designed by Johnston Marklee & Associates and BWS Germany.

Perhaps that was exactly what the creative geniuses at Johnston Marklee & Associates wanted from their use of the Air Display plates that systematically flit in the California sunshine? A company known for larger-than-life signage, BWS Germany worked with Johnston Marklee and the shop owners to create a stylish look that won’t be forgotten – even if it’s after eating a helping of Roscoe’s chicken and waffles that you’ve already denied consuming.

The basic plates of the Air Display collection measure 30 x 30 cm and contain 100 aluminum fixing pins. The plates can be sawed or cut into specific shapes and screwed, nailed, or stuck onto any surface. Made from a synthetic resin ABS, they are impact-resistant and weatherproof. In addition to the exterior standard, they also come in an internal option with a non-flammable finish.

Then there are the UV-resistant discs made from metallic foil that, beyond being matte reflective, are also dust repellent and 100% maintenance-free. They are 0.2 to 0.28 mm thick and 29 mm in diameter which leaves 1 mm of space between the discs when fully assembled.

Although it may seem like a daunting task, imagine each piece to be one square of graph paper or like the individual pixel-like work of the masterful portrait artist Chuck Close. According to BWS Germany, this process should make each screen dot equivalent to one square (or about 2.1 cm² of graph paper) and to keep it as simple as possible, they recommend all measurements are kept divisible by 30cm in order to mount most efficiently.

Specific images can be executed onto the panels with an application of plastic, acrylic, metal, glass, or silk screening. Just like the effect of the Mameg and Maison Martin Margiela boutiques, Air Display makes for a recognizable facade that seems more like a work of art in the letters and words you want passersby to remember forever.