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Archive for the ‘trompe l oeil painting’ Category

We are finally in and are now getting ready for the opening!

Yes I know, the construction delays have been horrendous to say the least, but as of a couple of weeks ago they gave me the “O.K.”

So now I will work as hard as I can to regain some of the lost time.

This weekend was very productive for me because I was able to get the basis of the new studio mural project started, and I must say for an old guy I even impressed myself and was able to get all of the trompe loeil architecture features laid out on this 20′ x 14′ wall and the first coat of base paint applied. I am going to blog this with progress posts to document the procedure for my current and future clients so they can get familiar with some of the steps involved

Being that I limited the space on the reception area to only a small area in order to have as much working studio space as possible, I had already planned to create the illusion of  space through the use of trompe loeil and landscape murals. The east and west walls will adorn more trompe loeil in the form of marble and wood panels with some ornamental designs.

As you can see there are a few problem areas that have to be worked into the concept which is really no problem at all once you have a plan of attack, but in this case I am working on the fly with this because I have no time to spend on renderings if I plan to be open by the end of March.

I work well under pressure and sometimes I even amaze myself when I have to be creative in situations like these. Two of the problems like the return air vent and the double doors leading into the class room I have already remedied and will hide these within the mural project. The A.C. duct I am still thinking about. The “kick plates” are really an eye sore but I am not allowed to paint these ……but now that I think about it they didnt say anything about removing it though lol

Being that its tight quarters I am forced to do the best I can with the Sony camera I have to get the shots necessary shots to show the progress.

Tomorrow I plant to get the color and over glaze done accomplished so I can move on to the trompe loeil…….

It seems I just cant get away from the trompe loeil work for hand painted furniture, but you know I love this kind of work especially when I have the time available to do my own thing. I was introduced to yet another Interior Designer from one of my vast array of contacts that I have built up over the last couple of years as a result of  my “Gonzo Networking” as I like to call it named so after one of my favorite writers Hunter S. Thompson who was a well known author and a controversial journalist of the 60’s on up until his demise a couple of years back. This type of networking just proves  that you should do this everyday no matter what  shortfalls the economic conditions throw at us, but I will go into these kind of things on my new blog that I am getting ready to launch on marketing for artist as well as some ways to make some additional income during times like these

But for now here’s couple of pics of a hand painted furniture piece with some ornamental trompe loeil in a french country style

The design and layout was all hand painted with an orange gold metalic to compliment the french blue

This is a better shot to get an idea of the kind of depth that can be created with a simple design and a little trompe loeil

I personally like hand painting projects like these because of the authentic look you end up with.  It gives the piece a much higher quality end result than using a stencil design. It’s Not that there’s anything wrong with stencils I just prefer  not to use them on furniture which gives you the freedom of designing your own unique touch

With the opening of the new studio simple techniques such as this one will be taught at the new location in Bonita Springs. I have just received the Certificate of Occupancy and am in the process of getting everything in order to have a nice opening , Sign up for our newsletter to keep updated on all of our events that will be coming very quickly

I thought I would post the final results of the recent cabinet faux finish that I completed last week. As you all know my favorite kind of finish and art is trompe leoil and I will always jump at the chance of painting it no matter how challenging the design. The lay out and design comes pretty easy to me being that I have studied most of this in school during all my drafting and blue print making days. All my perspective education was taught in my younger years in school and was one of the first things we learned in art classes was the importance one point, two point, atmospheric perspective and many more.

At 12 years old I designed and built my very first gun cabinet for my grandfather and at 13 I built a grandfather clock for my mother out of cherry they were both bigger than I was lol

Being that we had no money for college and coming from a hard working blue collar family I soaked up every ounce of education that was offered to me through school until I finally had to go to work at 16, and I am still that way today

Of course I am not 16 any longer but I do crave knowledge and learning and at this point of my life I find myself teaching more and more of what I have learned over the last 30 plus years.

So with that being said I am in the process of opening a new studio in Bonita Springs Fl which is will be an open working studio but I will also be having classes of many different art forms from decorative to fine art and may even have some sculpting and carving classes. At any rate there will be lots of fun and activity at the location with not only Art-Faux Designs but also with other businesses in the building working under a coop situation

Sign up for our newsletter to stay in the loop for classes, seminars, demos and also our

New Studio

Opening in February

Over the past year I have seen an increase in popularity in trompe loeil being used as a solution to a problem

rather than the beauty of the art form, which to me it really doesn’t matter either way, as long as I am painting it!

In the many years that I have been painting, trompe loeil has always been one of my favorites, probably because of my fascination of architecture.

On this one  I was asked if I could make this pocket door “disappear” because the owners of this home didn’t like how obtuse it was in such a tight surrounding after having this guest bath remodeled

Matching the wall tile that had a chiseled edge was a bit challenging but not real difficult

All it really is about is light and shadow.

Nearly finished, the result is what the client was wanting and with a final over glaze to warm it up. The finish was a a great match

and I have another happy client

Small jobs like these can be very expensive if you resort to glazing techniques which dry slowly and increase the amount of trips back and forth

Having the knowledge of being able to work in several mediums and techniques I used a fast drying system here with virtually no glazing which reduced the amount of trips back and forth and brought the costs down to the clients budget, or close to it , and was able to make this pocket door at least blend in with it’s surroundings for a reasonable price.

And more importantly another happy client…..

Faux Finishing for 2010

Decorative artist Arthur Morehead

Art-Faux Designs Inc

regarded in the area as an expert in the painting industry will hold,

A faux finishing seminar on

Saturday January 9th, 2010 from 2:00 pm-3:00 pm

The International Design Center,

located at 10800 Corkscrew Road Estero, Florida 33928

Please RSVP by calling (239) 390-8207.

Watch this video from one of our last seminars where a live demonstration was done…..

Come see the many samples of finishes and

things that can be accomplished with paints, plaster, foils, and variety of other mediums.

“I have seen an increase in demand for murals and trompe loeil,”

“which is understandable, being that the market seems to be more on the decorative side with clean looking venetian plaster applications for modern designs, with a little bit of both old and new”

With the finishing of the Sean Crosby class in November

We will be introducing more guest instructors in the future

But first I have to get through the next couple of months of getting ready for the grand opening of the new studio in Bonita Springs Fl

Faux finishing is far more than the typical

“sponge painting” that most are accustomed to seeing and

this slide show presentation and informative seminar

Arthur explains the value of the professional decorative artists

and why interior designers choose to use

The Professionals

Over 30 years experience in the painting industry

A resident of Naples since 1987,

Arthur is regarded as an expert in the field and

with a network of many professionals,

Art-Faux Designs Inc

Is The “Go To” Place

for all your decorative painting needs

Call 239 417 1888

www.Art-Faux.com Email: Arthur@Art-Faux.com