2026
Giant Matchbox Replica
Giant Matchbox Replica
Invercargill, NZ
Transport World, Invercargill
A scaled-up Matchbox replica, big enough to fit a real car inside, created for an exhibition at Transport World Invercargill featuring miniature collections, including the Vern Gill Matchbox collection. I designed the artwork while at Vital Signs, using a 1983 Matchbox blue window packaging as the reference.
Signage Graphics
Vector Graphics
Challenge
Vintage packaging is full of small details like typography, logos, and layout, and enlarging them to fit panels that house a full-size car leaves nowhere to hide. Any slip in the lettering or proportions would be obvious next to the original design people know and recognise.
Strategy
I rebuilt the packaging as vector graphics so every element could be scaled up without losing sharpness. The fonts and other details from the 1983 box were reproduced closely so the final design stayed faithful to the original. The artwork was then sized to fit the panels that form the structure around the car.
Outcome
The outcome was a life-size Matchbox box that holds an actual car and turns a collector's miniature into a walk-up exhibit. The artwork stays sharp at scale and true to the 'blue window' packaging it came from.
Gallery
Matchbox Replica graphics, scaled up to fit a real car inside
Matchbox Replica graphics, scaled up to fit a real car inside
The original 1983 Matchbox Blue Window box packaging was recreated and scaled up to fit a real car inside
The original 1983 Matchbox Blue Window box packaging was recreated and scaled up to fit a real car inside
2026
Giant Matchbox Replica
Invercargill, NZ
Transport World, Invercargill
A scaled-up Matchbox replica, big enough to fit a real car inside, created for an exhibition at Transport World Invercargill featuring miniature collections, including the Vern Gill Matchbox collection. I designed the artwork while at Vital Signs, using a 1983 Matchbox blue window packaging as the reference.
Signage Graphics
Vector Graphics
Challenge
Vintage packaging is full of small details like typography, logos, and layout, and enlarging them to fit panels that house a full-size car leaves nowhere to hide. Any slip in the lettering or proportions would be obvious next to the original design people know and recognise.
Strategy
I rebuilt the packaging as vector graphics so every element could be scaled up without losing sharpness. The fonts and other details from the 1983 box were reproduced closely so the final design stayed faithful to the original. The artwork was then sized to fit the panels that form the structure around the car.
Outcome
The outcome was a life-size Matchbox box that holds an actual car and turns a collector's miniature into a walk-up exhibit. The artwork stays sharp at scale and true to the 'blue window' packaging it came from.
Gallery
Matchbox Replica graphics, scaled up to fit a real car inside
Matchbox Replica graphics, scaled up to fit a real car inside
The original 1983 Matchbox Blue Window box packaging was recreated and scaled up to fit a real car inside