This last mural project had some serious perks. I got to stay at a beach house in Yachats, OR. with an ocean view for 2 nights, while I worked on the mural for their mud porch! I brought my Dad along, who is a watercolor artist, so he could paint too! It was great to have him there... good company and also another artistic eye to bounce things off of. Love you Dad! (I know you're reading this.) At the end of the weekend, here's what it looked like:
BEFORE:
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| The approved digital collage/sketch done in photoshop.... |
And AFTER:
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| Painted shadows for all the objects for the beach... |
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| REAL shells, driftwood, beach glass, agates glued onto the wall!!! |
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| A few painted "shells" in the background to blend into the real ones glued on. |
This one was really a lot of fun to do. Not only was it fun to paint, but figuring out the 3-d and textural elements for the mural was exciting for me. After sketching the design on the wall, I brushed a bunch of granular acrylic gel (basically just clear paint with sand and chunky stuff in it) onto the sand and beach area. This stuff dried to a bumpy, sandy finish. Then I painted the sand colors over it, and added the shells and rocks and driftwood at the very end. The mural is so much fun to touch!! Loving the idea of blending 2-d with 3-d.
The vacation rental owners had a very positive reaction to seeing the mural. The honor and pleasure of turning someone's vision into reality, and transforming their space, is what gets me excited about painting murals for clients. It can be really difficult to get inside a client's head, and try to filter their feelings, thoughts and words through my own brain, to still get an image they want in the end. It's what unique, custom, tailored-to-you murals are all about - asking the right questions to find out what the client wants, and then giving it to them.
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