I've always dreamed about doing murals, especially on the sides of whatever house I currently inhabit (to the chagrin of my fellow inhabitants, at times). Never have I made good on those threats, until now. However, my first mural is on a much different scale than I ever expected, being completely contained within a tiny 7" concrete cube.
The cube is technically a planter. It is soon to be planted with all manner of tiny succulents to the cumulative effect of a miniature urban garden. I'll post pics, of course.
Can you imagine this filled with itsy flora as if lovingly cultivated by bitsy gardeners?
It belongs to a dear friend of mine, who requested a graffiti mural to complete the 'urban rooftop' vibe of the future ecosystem, and every component of the mural is personally significant to him--from the characters, patterns, colors, and graffiti tags laid in on top. Each element tells a story which is known to him and a few of his closest.
One of my favorite parts was playing with the metallic gold acrylic over the concrete. It has a beautiful effect, and I'm sure you've seen many DIY-ers playing with metallic on concrete all over the internet.
One of the other fun spots was creating an adventure-time themed medallion design to wrap around a corner. Having never seen the show, I had to do my fair share of research to make sure I properly captured the characters.
I also have always loved Katsushika Hokusai's image of Mount Fuji and the Great Wave, so when my friend asked me to incorporate ocean themes, I got right to work taking that iconic image and tweaking it to utilize the bold colors and natural concrete texture I was working with.
For the graffiti piece, I wanted to attempt something along the lines of one of my favorite graffiti artist, an Angelino who goes by Cre8. He works in Koreatown, teaching art classes and graffiti techniques to kids in some of the worst schools of LA.
I liked this "muscle beach" piece he did in Santa Monica, and sketched up a piece in a similar style.
For the graffiti piece, I wanted to attempt something along the lines of one of my favorite graffiti artist, an Angelino who goes by Cre8. He works in Koreatown, teaching art classes and graffiti techniques to kids in some of the worst schools of LA.
I liked this "muscle beach" piece he did in Santa Monica, and sketched up a piece in a similar style.
After doing my first "graffiti", I'm chomping the bit to try more...maybe with actual spray paint instead of a teensy tiny filbert paintbrush!
Anyone got a boring house that needs a little personality?
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