Nursery Tree Murals

After recently finishing my last nursery mural, I sat down and thought about all of the one's that I have done before it. Apparently I get asked to do a lot of tree murals. Don't get me wrong, I like doing them. I think that I'm pretty good at painting trees.

If you google "nursery tree mural" literally thousands of murals will come up. And they are all so very different from each other. Why is it that when you are about to have a baby do you suddenly want to have someone come in and paint a tree in your house. I think that they represent life, growth, vitality and strength. All things that you want to incorporate into the very first room your baby will live in. Maybe we want to return to nature, but since we cannot really sit outside so much here in Dallas we choose to bring the outdoors in.

I want to paint a really gnarly tree in my office/studio. So at least I'm not sick of them yet. I promise to post pictures.

IF-disguise

Rex was sure no one would recognize him with this disguise.

My first entry in Illustration Friday. Tee Hee. I plan to enter much much more.

Ballooons!

I love this picture of Wilder and I at the Nasher Sculpture Center here in Dallas this weekend. Click on the Title to follow a link to the exhibit page. The room is filled with 9,000 balloons that go up to a height of eight feet. They tell you not to go in if you are claustrophobic or have a latex allergy. It was definitely fun but can get kind of confining and disorienting towards the middle. Think ball pit amplified.

Word Wall

I am really bad at blogging. I am visual not verbal and since I am already posting on Facebook and Flickr it seems really redundant to post here unless I have something to say. I have not posted anything since February even though I have been producing so I thought I would talk about this last mural that I did.

It was done for little boy who isn't quite two and just moved into his big boy room. His mother wanted me to create a wall with words that would inspire him to be a good person. She has decided to not have a "theme" for his room like airplanes or sports but wants to make his room all about learning and I think that so far it is very fresh and modern.

I created the layout in illustrator and then projected it on the wall using an opaque projector. It sounds a little like cheating, except my projector is very finicky and painting in the dark will give you a crazy headache. Once the layout was on the wall, I turned the lights back on and went back over all of the words to make them look a little prettier. I wouldn't say that words are my most favorite thing to paint, but I think that they turned out really well.

Happy Birthday Sarah

About five or so years ago I started this tradition with my friend Sarah where I would make her something for her birthday. This year I asked her what she wanted and she said she really liked the dandelion mural that I did in a clients bathroom but would like it in more brown tones. I asked her what her favorite flower was and she said she liked lilies and birds of paradise. I used to really like birds of paradise but now, not so much. So I went with the lilies. To make the pattern on the background I went to Lowe's (where I'm sure they think I'm crazy) and got this big piece of perforated aluminum and spray painted through it. I love the effect it gives. I plan on doing another one very similar to this one but with tulips for my friend Rachel for her birthday in March. But just because it might be your birthday don't expect me to paint you something. =)

Height Charts

My sister had wanted to do something different this year for Christmas, so she hired me to make custom height charts for her best friend's kids and for her neice and nephews (on her husbands side). Of course I waited to the last possible minute to do them even though she asked me in June. I had to photograph them in sections and then photoshop them together, since they are so long. So if any one wants one for next year, let me know now. I will need to know the child's name, favorite color and a theme.

Ten Year Plan

On the eve of my thirtieth birthday, I've decided to make myself a plan for the next decade. Everyone knows that I want to be a children's book illustrator, but after going to California, I know that I have a lot further to go. Recently, I've realized that I need a better day job, so I've started studying for the GRE. That's the first step. I have to re-learn algebra. If that goes well, I want to apply to UNT. They have a Master's program in Art Education. The program also certifies you to teach art. If I get a job as an art teacher I will have the same schedule as Wilder, which is also a plus. Of course I can still work on my portfolio and do murals during this time and hopefully find an agent. I know that plans are dumb and nothing goes the way you think they are going to, but it makes me feel better to have a plan.