Spa design

Any interior designer will tell you that the colours you choose in your office or business environment can greatly impact the way your visitors and employees will feel about your premises and will create an emotional response whether positive or negative.

One way to do this is through the use of wall murals. A mural can be defined as a piece of artwork that is applied directly to any permanent surface including walls, ceilings, plaster or brick. The work a muralist does can be truly breath taking as often the architectural structure of the building can be incorporated into the work.

Settings For Murals

Murals have been commissioned around the world and in various settings for thousands of years. The early murals were often used as tools for political and social messaging tools and are an important part of bringing art into the public sphere. Modern murals are often commissioned by local governments and businesses. Murals can vary in size and location and can often depict local topics, events or people. However, murals are also popular with retail outlets, hotels and restaurants to add atmosphere to the premises and can be a key part in increasing the appeal of the business to its patrons.

Types Of Work

Different murals will have strengths in different types of mural application. Whether this is through the use of oil paints, acrylics, emulsion or applied by paint brush, aerosol can or airbrush. Work is normally carried out with an initial project brief and consultation with the muralist laying out detailed design of the mural and agreeing a quote before work commences. This design is then usually gridded onto the area directly so as to scale the mural accurately according to the project dimensions or in some cases the mural may projected onto the wall and then traced with pencil. Some artists even prefer a free hand approach where paint is applied directly to the wall without any prior sketching needed.

Trompe L’oeil

Trompe l’oeil when translated from French literally means “deceives the eye”. This art work can create truly stunning pieces which can act as a great focal point to any premises. Trompe L’oeil works by skilfully applying paint to a two dimensional plane to make it look like a three dimensional image. This deception works very well from a distance and it is only closer inspection that the viewer sees the trickery. The kind of work carried out on a Trompe L’oeil piece can be quite realistic and involves a highly skilled technical ability.

Faux Finishes

Faux Finishing has been used for over a millennia. From the earliest cave paintings to modern decorative painting effects, artists have been tricking viewers into believing that their decorative paint finishes are the real thing. Faux Finishing uses paint and glaze which is often applied directly to the wall with a roller, rag, sponge or brush to make to look like a real life texture. This can incorporate many mediums including wood graining, marbling, colour washes, stoneblocking, distressing and guilding. These finishes to do not just have to applied to walls they can also add freshness to furniture and fireplaces too.

Mel Holmes is a muralist and Trompe l’oeil artist who has been commissioned around the world. You can see more of Mel’s Murals at http://www.melholmes.co.uk