A Baltimore maker created a replica of the Domino Sugars sign, and is auctioning it for charity

For the next few months, there will be an absence on Baltimore’s waterfront.

Letter-by-letter, the iconic Domino Sugars sign was removed this month after shining out on the city since 1951. The piece of Baltimore’s industrial legacy isn’t going away. Rather, it’s being replaced with a new Domino Sugars sign, which will have modern upgrades like LED bulbs. As the Baltimore Sun reported, the company is assuring folks that the look of the sign won’t be any different when version 2.0 is installed this summer.

However, with the sign being taken down, there’s something of a void for the community. Baltimoreans have attempted to fill it by creating memes as the letters were removed and tracking where in the city the giant icons will end up after disassmebling.

Baltimore maker Todd Blatt has more of a more direct-to-Baltimore-homes approach. He created a replica of the sign, and is offering a chance for folks to own it by auctioning it on eBay. It’s a move for charity, as 75% of proceeds going to the American Diabetes Assocation.

Own a scale replica of a monument to #Baltimore history, a 1:20 scale miniature of one of the largest neon signs ever made.

5,000 LEDs, 6'x3.5 #LED Neon wiring'

75% of this auction will go directly to #Diabetes research charity @ADAHouston https://t.co/tb3jJ186zl#dominosugar pic.twitter.com/d3tDc3S2kb

— Todd Blatt (@tblatt) March 30, 2021

“Own a brilliant monumental replica of Baltimore history, a miniature of one of the largest neon signs ever made,” Blatt wrote. “The LED wiring is the same type that will be used in the sign’s replacement later this year.”

The 6-foot wide by 3.5 feet tall sign is a 1:20 scale of the original version, which was 70-feet-by-120 feet. It has a metal frame and 5,000 LED lights.

This is Blatt’s second charity auciton of a version of the Domion sign. Earlier in March, he made a replica of the “no” that became a meme around local social media when only the last two letters remained. Prior to the end of the auction, Blatt displayed that sign on North Calvert St. in Charles Village.

It’s just the latest project for Blatt, a Baltimore Node member who has brings prior experience at the intersection of making and the zeitgeist with a 3D-printed the Bernie Sanders mittens meme and a life-size replica of Han Solo in carbonite.