I just finished up a mural for my friends who run Dreaming Tree Rentals out of NW Portland. This mural is small (ish) but hopefully, impactful, as it's the first thing you see when you enter the airbnb rental apartments. This wall is the central point as you walk up the flight of stairs, leading to a landing that separates off into three different apartments: "The Hideaway", "The Oasis" and "The Nest". We debated for awhile about whether the design should be more about the urban parts of the city, or more about the natural parts. In the end, we decided that maybe if you're visiting Portland and staying in the rentals, what you might want after a long day exploring, is a bit of peace and quiet. The spaces really do feel like a secluded escape from the city, and the mural speaks to that, now.
I like to think I got a little loose with this one - letting my swirly brushstrokes and shapes come out to play a bit more than usual. This is definitely how I prefer to paint, rather than rendering things more realistically. Because what is art, if not augmenting reality? And swirlies are how I choose to augment.
This was sure a fun one... I just wish you could see it! I've decided that I've been in business long enough to invest a bit more into it, and get myself a nicer camera to document my work with. Every year around tax time, I always ponder the same thing - I run a funny sort of business in that there is little to no overhead. I go to other people to work, with no actual space rental myself. Yes, I buy paint in large quantities a few times a year, and splurge on brushes sometimes (because there's just no escaping an art store without throwing down for a few new brushes that I'm sure I NEED. NEED!) ...And I pay to host my website. But other than that, my business is sort of run on my brain and my hands. So I'm going to turn some of 2016's mural income into a camera, and I couldn't be more stoked. Look forward to blog and website updates with crisper, more true-to-life color photos cuz this girl's iphone is just not cutting it anymore. But for today, enjoy the following:
