I was so tickled to find an email from a student in Tennessee who was making a mural and writing a paper on "American Muralists". Here is my response:
Hello Melanie,
First of all, what attracted you to muraling vs. other forms of art?
If you visited the website, you realize I have dabbled in many forms of art; book and magazine illustration, oil painting on canvas, watercolor, children's illustration, murals, metal sculpture, clay sculpture, etc. etc., etc. What appeals in muraling to me is the size of the work, the public nature of the work and the permanency (sp) of the work. My favorite mural pieces are the biggest. It's a thrill to work so large as the whole painting process is changed. It becomes a physical effort and there are technical problems that are completely different. Such as, "How am I going to make a straight line that carries itself 30 feet?" or "How am I going to reach THAT spot?". It's cool to meet people while you're working as well. Usually, people only get to see a finished painting hung on a wall. With a mural, you're out there on display from rough markings and broad color fields to the completed picture. Many come and give their 2 cents along the way. I generally take their 2 cents and incorporate them into the mural. This is really powerful as then the viewers actually become a part of the wall. The permanency part of muraling is neat as the completed work becomes part of the area it's made on - a landmark. It's great to be talking to someone and see their eyes light up as they speak about a mural they've seen and then I tell them that it was painted by me. Not all works stay put. Austin is in a building frenzy and many murals are being destroyed for progress. I don't mind so much. They've had their time, but there are some murals around town that I've seen since I was a child. There were a couple of muralists who were in the business of renovating such pieces and for a short while there was even a mural conservancy group here. I sit on the fence about the issue.
In Australia you talked to a store owner who got you started in muraling while doing other odd jobs but how did you get recognized in Austin, TX?
After returning from Australia, I was really broke - mentally and financially. I thought I was going to live there and here I was having to start over back in Austin. I had done some illustration work for a local pizza shop and become friends with the owner. He had an eclectic artist friend who was building "The Feed Mill" out in Johnson City. We were introduced, I bid the job and began work on my biggest job ever. I was young and foolish and had nothing to lose. I priced the job far less than any normal person would consider. I had a number of scrapes and skirmishes painting the piece and have scars to prove it. But I did it and it's a firm landmark. Problem was that it was an hour outside of Austin. It wasn't until I was working on the Austin Java Co. mural that I got the full amount of Austin attention. I met these folks as they were looking for paintings to hang inside their restaurant. When I showed up to show them my portfolio, I included the shots of the Mill and the work in Australia. It was an easy sell. When I began painting, I parked the limousine I had just finished, hung paintings in the restaurant and sent out press releases to all of the local media. This bagged a news story and a cover story by the Austin Chronicle. Press releases are good.
What would you say is your best piece of work?
It's gotta be the Feed Mill. I'm partial to the work done at the Cue Lounge for it's content, but the Feed Mill is epic. It's this giant painting out in the middle of nowhere Texas that has to be appreciated by walking all the way around the building and across and down the street.
> I know that you used air brush on the limo; is that what you always use
>or do you execute you work in other mediums?
I usually use Acrylic based housepaint. Water clean-up is important as I get paint all over me as I work. I'd rather concentrate on the ladder than finding a rag. Housepaint is cheap. You can get a gallon of color for $20 and it's guaranteed for 15 years. I usually buy a red, a yellow and a blue in a matching range of value plus a black and a white. I mix all of the colors for the mural from these.
Thanks so much for your time and help. :)
One more note. . .
If you're going to make a mural, don't just make a what you would make as a small picture bigger and on a wall. Really examine the space - the ways the wall will be approached and viewed. Try to incorporate elements of the surroundings or make use of the things that make that particular wall unique like brick textures or power line shadows. Think big. Think creatively big.
When you're finished with your report, I would love to read what you've done and see pictures of your mural!
Thank you,
Nathan Jensen
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