Proceed Workshop a Success

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In June I organized a Golden Proceed workshop for local International Decorative Artisans League (IDAL) chapters.  Members from Capital Area Decorative Artisans (CADA) and Greater Maryland Decorative Artisans (GMDA) gathered at GMDA's regular meeting place, the Howard County Center for the Arts, to learn about the Proceed line of Decorative Painting Products made by Golden Artist Colors from Lori Wilson, CS.  Budekes Paints and Decorating (who now stocks Proceed) helped make the event a success by providing lunch and prizes for attendees. We had a full class with artisans from Virgina, West Virginia, Maryland and even Pennsylvania in attendance!

The event had been in the works for quite some time. Last April 2011 I was talking with Lori Wilson and Howard Thaller at Salon in Atlanta about being able to buy Proceed locally.  I knew that my local paint store, Budekes, would be a perfect fit. It was just a matter of convincing them that they should carry the line.  I also wanted to be able to purchase product off the shelf that I use every day and not wait days for shipping.

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A year later, Budekes now carries Proceed and has been a great help with providing local decorative artisans and painters alike with exceptional products and service. Thanks Bryan!! (I don't get any money from Golden to promote Proceed, I just like their product and their philosophy.)

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Second Round

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A year ago I worked with the same client who had me complete a plethora of work for them.  This year I'm back for round two.  Previously I had painted columns, applied metallic plaster, and done some artwork for the children's rooms:

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This time, we focused on artwork for the stairwells and some for the master bedroom.  I also was asked to add to the children's room.  My last post I showed you how a painting evolves form a sketch to a final work.  That was for this client. Here are the other pieces for which I was commissioned. Hope you enjoy!

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cloud mural large

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tryptic

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sitting room

And...

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Evolution of a Painting

fountain with tree

A painting starts with a series of sketches.  To get to this point there are several hours of research, designing, discussions with the client, revisions, then final approval.  Sometimes the sketch is done in color. For this piece, we had images of stone that we selected for age, color and patina.

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I usually start with an underpainting of values to help create the depth before adding color. This also helps with getting to the right value without a ton of paint. I don't always do this, but for Trompe L'oeil it helps me see the dimension and establish light and shadow placement.

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Next I add the tones of the stone.  I premix my main colors and tweak them on the palette as I go.  This piece has a lot of warm shadows and cool highlights.  You can also see my reference material.  I spend countless hours searching for the right references.  Without them, I am unable to really replicate the natural qualities of the material.

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Once the main areas are blocked in, I like to go back and tweak areas to make sure its cohesive.  The center will have a very specific image that will look like a bas relief carving.  I shot reference photos, including Mike's hands pouring water.  The water in the carving was the most difficult. I wanted it to look fluid but at the same time it had to be "carved" out of the stone.

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The final piece, varnished before cutting and installation. You can see the pitting and cracking that I added for authenticity.

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Installation was done by Shelly Wilkins of Walls Etc.

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And the final result:

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Tada!

I added shadowing on the wall once it was installed.

A note on canvas installation vs painting on site...

I really prefer to paint on canvas to painting on site for several reasons.  It allows me to paint in the comfort of my studio, and the client doesn't have to put up with me for the weeks it takes to do the work.  It also allows the painting to become transportable.  In the case of a move, it is very easily taken down with some warm soapy water.  The investment is not left behind! Its great for kids rooms too.

The art of painting on canvas and adhering it to the wall is a 3000 year old method referred to as "marouflage." You can learn more about the technique here.

Some public examples of this type of work can be seen at the Library of Congress, The Capitol Building, the Biltmore Estate, and countless others.

Creative Itch

I've got an itch I need to scratch. Well, several actually. I have all of these ideas floating around in my head I feel as though about to explode.  Ideas for furniture painting, artwork, business stuff, things I want to learn to do, like "Verre Eglomise"...as well as projects for my house...there isn't enough hours in the day. I feel like I'm paralyzed by idea overload. Especially when the day is 105' and it takes all of my efforts just to get one foot in front of the other. Anyone else have this problem? Its just a matter of carving out time to do it while honoring my commitments with clients. Easier said than done! I wish I had an army of elves to jump on my ideas and get them made. Actually it'd be nice to have an army of elves to do a lot of things...laundry, cleaning, bills...but I digress.

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I've been thinking a lot about working on my own artwork and I think I finally have an organized direction. A friend of mine...Lori Wilson...was here recently and we had a long chat, er, discussion about life.  I don't think I've had a conversation like that in years.  While staying at my house for the Proceed workshop we put together, she noticed some paintings that I had done a long time ago. She asked who had done them and when I said me, she was surprised.  They're a different style than what I do now (if I have a style at all at this point.)  Earlier we were talking about doing your own art. She has recently completed a body of work and had a successful showing earlier this year. I had mentioned doing something with my dad's radios, an idea that Paula Henry had helped me brainstorm but I really hadn't found a direction.  I had talked about liking American subject matter like old cars, neon signs, architecture, etc and she had said that the paintings reminded her of Edward Hopper.  I was pretty happy about that because that was who I was into when I painted them.  Then she made the connection for me between the radios and those paintings.  It was like the proverbial light bulb went off in my head! Thanks Lori!  There's a lot more floating around in my head than cars and radios that I'm still fleshing out so you'll have to stay tuned.  I'm thinking that I would love to have a body of work by 4th of July next year to show at a gallery.

I've also thought about hiring.  Not sure if I should hire outright or subcontract.  I've lost work because of how far out work is booked. I've talked with a lot of people about that and there are differing opinions and I can't decide what is best for me and what I feel comfortable letting go of.  What is my time best spent on? Would clients be upset if I had and assistant do some of the set up and preliminary stages for me?

I also want to find a real studio.  Perhaps one without snakes or mice or the parents upstairs. (I work on murals in my parents basement. Its my second "studio." The wildlife is in mine.) But everything is way too expensive or doesn't have any personality or in a not so nice area if it is reasonably priced.  If I had my druthers I would build a garage.  Or I would rent a place on main street in Ellicott City.  My dream would be to have a really cool warehouse that has a store front with a showroom where passers by could drop in and clients could come and meet.  The back would have a loading dock for easy loading and drop off, and one long uninterrupted wall with 20' ceilings for mural work. Ok, I'd settle for 12'.  Oh and lots of natural light.  And I could leave my messes without anyone complaining about it. Anyone have a place like that within 5 miles of my house for lets say $500 a month!? Didn't think so.

But a girl can dream!

Busy Bee

Its always a pleasure to have great clients.  Case in point with my latest completed project.  I was brought in by Jessica Barwick of Barwick Interiors to add some finishing touched to this recently completed home in Clarksville Maryland. Ceiling beams in the family room were woodgrained to match the entertainment center. Notice how I "mitered" the intersections. This added some architectural interest while allowing me to work in smaller sections.

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Along with the ceiling, I woodgrained the fireplace. It was white before:

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Next was the "adult" powder bathroom (the kids are supposed to use the one in the mudroom ;) ) Here I created a dimensional background with metallic and regular paints then added a stencil by Royal Designs over top.  The stencil did not have registration marks so I created a template for even spacing to create the look of wallpaper. This is a great way to get the EXACT colors and pattern that you want.

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The dining room got a Modello stencil and a silvery blue finish was custom mixed to go with the walls. (My work was published in their book!) I also painted the dining room chairs that go with the set that she inherited from her mother. Ill post completed pictures once the room is finished.

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Upstairs I created a focal wall in the Master Suite with silver leaf and the same stencil as the powder room. (She loved it that much!) I used metallic plaster custom tinted to match the wall color and a grey/taupe.

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without the flash:

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And finally, the kids each got a little something in their rooms. A pearly white and grey chandelier stencil for the girl's room:

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And a tonal blue stripe and newly painted desk:

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THANK YOU! To my awesome clients and to Jessica for bringing me in.

Up next:

I just started a project for another awesome client whom I've worked for previously.  I am doing several paintings throughout the home and this first one will be in the foyer. It will end up looking like stone.

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Stay tuned!