When speed-painter Harvey Dunn brought a world class performance to Montego Bay and a final brush-stroke that revealed the winning vendor’s logo, the ballroom erupted. It was the exclamation point on a four-week whirlwind in which PaintJam produced eleven custom paintings — six unveiled that night, five more for Chief Buildings’ sister divisions—proving once again that a “thank-you” can (and should) feel legendary.
The Brief: More Than a Plaque or a PowerPoint
Chief Buildings, a U-S-based steel-construction manufacturer with a nationwide network of independent contractors (think Vance Construction, Ivan Weaver Builders and other metal building specialists), wanted to honor its top five vendors. The company envisioned a multi-day travel incentive sales award meeting at an all-inclusive Jamaican resort: morning meetings, afternoon networking, and a single marquee evening dedicated to recognition.
What they did not want was the usual awards-banquet script — plastic trophies, polite applause, dessert, done. They wanted a moment their vendors would talk about all year, share on social media, and proudly display in their offices.
That’s where PaintJam came in.
The Challenge: Six Awards, Two Weeks, Zero Margin for Error
PaintJam’s mandate grew quickly:
- Create six custom speed-painted paintings —one for each vendor, with distinct imagery that captured each firm’s niche in the construction ecosystem.
- Pre-produce four of those portraits as high-energy performance videos to slot into an Oscars-style countdown (places 5 through 2).
- Paint the first-place and “Builders Choice” painting in real time in front of 300 executives, contractors, and guests.
- Deliver post-event media: Shipping the actual paintings to the awardees and sharing a gallery-ready digital file of the first place awardee to Chief to be turned into a giant lobby mural.
All of it had to be conceptualized, storyboarded, filmed, edited, rendered, crated, and—in Harvey’s case—memorized for stage before the PaintJam crew ever set foot on the plane.
The Solution: A Layer-Cake of Creativity and Logistics
Discovery & Concepting
PaintJam began with deep-dive interviews and research —learning what set each vendor apart; from Vance Construction’s state-of-the-art dairy barns to Ivan Weaver’s heritage craftsmanship in Amish communities. Every detail mattered: color palettes that matched company branding, Easter-egg symbols hidden in negative space, even the tempo of the background music
Virtual Performances
PaintJam produced four studio performances in Texas. Each piece was filmed with a three-camera setup, tight to the canvas and wide enough to show Harvey’s athletic choreography. Motion-graphic intros labelled “5th Place,” “4th,” and so on—built suspense for the live 1st place. Edited run-times were trimmed to under two minutes to keep the ballroom’s energy high.
Live Show in Montego Bay
On event night, the ballroom lights dimmed. A giant LED wall rolled the pre-produced countdown: applause after each rank. When the screen flashed “And now… 1st Place,” music shifted, spotlights ignited, and Harvey sprinted onstage with his brushes. Three minutes later—paint-splatter crescendos and a gravity-defying mid-air flourish—he spun the canvas to reveal Vance Construction’s logo framed by an Idaho sunrise. The crowd’s response was electric
Takeaways for Event Planners
- Recognition needs emotion. A plaque is polished metal; a speed-painting is kinetic storytelling that turns recipients into rock stars.
- Hybrid is here to stay. Virtual performances can handle volume and geography, freeing budget and brain-space for one jaw-dropping live moment.
- Content is currency. When every brush-stroke is filmed, your awards night becomes a year-round marketing toolkit—social clips, trade-show loops, recruitment reels.
- Experience over swag. Corporate guests own enough tumblers. Give them a story they’ll retell instead.
Ready to Make Your Celebration Legendary?
Whether you’re honouring vendors, donors, employees or halftime heroes, PaintJam transforms recognition into a spectacle that sticks. From multi-city virtual rollouts to on-stage finales that stop the room, we craft every detail so your brand—and your people—take center stage.
