Murals | Cabin Art

Three Rivers Museum Mural #2

Do you remember during the last post about the Three Rivers History Museum Mineral King mural that I advised you to stay tuned?

This week we resume our ongoing saga of Mineral King murals.

A man built a cabin facade (sorry, I don’t know how to make the little comma in the air above the “c” in “facade”. . . in case you are confused, it is a French word, and it is pronounced “fuh-SAWD”. It means fake front.)

Where was I?

In the Mineral King Room of the Three Rivers History Museum at the fake cabin front.

Cabin interior facade in Mineral King Room of Three Rivers History Museum

I bought that window at a garage sale because it is my favorite color and because it is neat-o, but I had no idea of how to use it. It sat in my workshop for 2 years or more, and then it was needed in this “cabin”.

The idea is to feel as if you are inside a cabin, looking at a Mineral King scene through the window.

First, I had to draw it. Wait – first I had to decide what to paint, then I had to put plastic and tape all around so I wouldn’t splatter or spill on the “cabin”.

Can you see it? That’s okay. You don’t have to. I do. I did. See the 2 photos beneath? These were my guides. I had to be careful to place the peak of Sawtooth where it wouldn’t fall behind one of the “bars” of the window. (I can’t remember what that word is, the wooden things that separate the panes of glass.)

Woohoo! This is going fast, and I just know it will be easy.

Fall down laughing. . . I forgot an important principle about painting murals. The smaller they are, the longer they take. “Longer” in relative time. Instead of about 1/2 hour per square foot, it is closer to an hour per square foot. This is because I keep detailing and detailing. I hope I remember this the next time I bid a mural job, and I hope I remember this and PACK A LUNCH!

Trail Guy to the rescue – he has kept me from being a starving artist for 30 years now.

This is too long. I’ll continue tomorrow.

Mineral King mural Three Rivers

New Mural in Three Rivers, Chapter 4

The mural at the Three Rivers History Museum is now finished!

(Yes, the light for photographing the mural is different in the morning than in the afternoon. You are observant about details like that!)

The lower background, the foreground and the trees all needed refining. Louise also noticed that someone climbing the tower would have to make a giant leap to reach the top, so I painted in another step. I added a bit more texture in the shaded parts of Empire Mt. along with 3 wild blue flax. These things are only apparent in person.

Best viewed from a bit of distance, perhaps down the hall as you enter the building. This is easier than viewing it from the back of a fast horse, or perhaps from a speeding car. However, you will miss the 3 wild blue flax if viewing it from down the hall.

Life is a series of decisions, choices and consequences.

There will be more. . . stay tuned.

Save

Mineral King mural Three Rivers

New Mural in Three Rivers, Chapter 3

The Mineral King mural in Three Rivers is in this building.

This is how the mural looked when I arrived on Day #2. Tower is in place, background sort of finished, trees located.

In the last post I said it is quiet in the museum. Ahem. Not on Day #2! A cabin facade is getting built behind me, and every hammer blow or power tool is amplified in the empty room with a tile floor. It is going to look great, and on the back wall will be a window with a painted view of something Mineral King.

On to the day’s work. . .

Something is wrong with that tower, but I can't see how to fix it in the photo. — Something is wrong with that tower, but I can’t see how to fix it in the photo.

Louise called someone who remembers the tower from when it was still standing. He verified that it had 4 legs. But, we couldn't figure out where the 4th one belonged or how those steps worked. — Louise called someone who remembers the tower from when it was still standing. He verified that it had 4 legs. But, we couldn’t figure out where the 4th one belonged or how those steps worked.

The bright sun came in through the skylight and with my strongest magnifier glasses, I figured it out!

First, I painted out that back let in its wrong position. — First, I painted out that back leg from its wrong position.

Then I painted it in the correct position and added the steps. Much better! It is tricky to paint things I’ve never seen, especially when the photos don’t help.

Now the lower background needs more work, along with the foreground.

Those small trees on the lower left look wrong. The trunks don't belong. They are too complete for their small size. Something is out of whack. — Those small trees on the lower left look wrong. The trunks don’t belong. They are too complete for their small size. Something is out of whack.

After putting growing things in the foreground, I painted off the bottoms of those 2 trees. On Day #3, I will figure this out and finish!

The mural started out sort of easy, but on Day #2 I was just making stuff up without photos to help. That’s not easy at all.

Mineral King mural Three Rivers

New Mural In Three Rivers, Chapter Two

I may have estimated my time to be longer than anticipated for the new mural at the Three Rivers Museum.. Perhaps the customer will think I am over charging. Guess I’d better moan on and on about how difficult this is.

I left you hanging on this cliff yesterday. Moan, moan, this is sooo hard.

Trying to match the terrain and not sure what to do with the lower edges, since I have no photo of a scene that no longer exists. I’ve sketched in the tower and the trunks of a few trees to see if we like the placement and the size.

Let’s have a straight on view so you can appreciate the difficulty of this task.

This is a photo of the top of Empire so I can see the configuration. If you show up in person, I can point to where the tram towers were. And these are my paint colors used so far. Doesn’t this look really difficult??

Just bumbling along. At this stage, it seemed time to add the needles on the red firs. Did you know those were red firs? I bet you thought they were Sequoias. This is why I get paid The Big Bucks. . . I know this stuff.

This is how the mural looked when I left for the day on Monday.

No, THIS is how it looked when I left for the day. I hope it is how it looks when I return next.

All that moaning about difficulty was fake. This might be the easiest location I have ever painted in. Indoors, consistent temperature, consistent light, very few interruptions, no trucks roaring by, and much can be reached without even climbing on the ladders.

Let’s have another look at Samson. He’s waiting for me to get home from work.

Mineral King mural mural Three Rivers

New Mural in Three Rivers

Yesterday I began a new mural in the Three Rivers Museum’s new Mineral King Room. The internet was on vacation, so you get to see the beginnings today.

This is the only photo I have of the Three Rivers Museum. Paul Bunyon doesn’t belong here, except that Carroll Barnes of Three Rivers carved him from a Sequoia.

Paul Bunyon in Three Rivers at the museum.

blank wall — Blank wall in the Mineral King room designed by Gary Cort and built by Pete Crandall.

outline, ready to paint — The first step is to find the edges of the mural and mask it for painting. This is 5 feet wide by 7 feet high.

The sky is the first thing, because I almost always paint what is farthest away first.

How’s this for a sketchy sketch as a guide for the mural? Yeah, I know. It’s sketchy.

wrong gray — I mixed up Purple Mountains Majesty, plus a basic gray. It was the wrong color of gray – not enough contrast to PMM.

better gray — Better gray to complement Purple Mountains Majesty. (Why, yes, I did make up my own paint color name! Thank you for noticing!)

What am I painting? So glad you asked. This is the upper reaches of Empire Mountain, which contains multiple mines. There was a tram with a cable running on towers to carry buckets of ore from the mines down to the stamp mill. I will paint a tram tower in the front. You can see the beginnings of it tomorrow.

Meanwhile, would you like to say hello to Samson?

Mineral King mural Three Rivers

Finishing the murals

Did you think I was going to leave you hanging as to how the Tanzania mural looked?

Customer called to say the cape buffalo needed about 1/2 hour of work. I was relieved to hear from him, because my final day working on them was without his expertise. I’ve never seen those animals, except in photos (and there was that one stuffed head staring at the back of my head while I painted).

So, I headed back down the hill one beautiful spring morning.

morning drive

He has a good eye and was very helpful.

Before:

After:

Yes, the differences are subtle, but my goal is customer satisfaction.

Then, Customer looked at me and said, “You left something out of the other mural.”

I said, “Shoot. I was hoping you would forget.”

He just tapped the side of his head. Then he waited for me to tell him what he wanted, so I smiled and said, “Buzzards!”

Using masking tape torn into little pieces, I stuck some buzzards shapes up in the sky. We scooted them around and discussed relative sizes and shapes. Then, I painted them.

As usual, Customer was right:

This photo of the finished Tanzania mural isn’t the best because the morning sun comes through the window and overexposes the one side. However, this photo beats the one with the scaffolding in front, and the slightly wonky buffalo.

Can you pick out the buzzards in the Missouri mural? Tiny, but they add the right finishing touch. This mural keeps amazing me, because the photo was so meh.

On the way home, I couldn’t just blow past Dry Creek Drive, knowing it was just filthy with poppies and lupine.

California poppies mural poppies

Mural #2, Day Four and a Half

This was a day of tiny little branches, painted while sitting, kneeling and standing on the scaffolding. The most difficult part was not falling into the branching pattern of a Valley Oak. (Did you think I was going to say “not falling off the scaffolding”?)

I had to draw these branches with my brush, which never works as well as a pencil. Lots of climbing up and down to see if the branches were growing correctly.

I adjusted the lightness and darkness of the branches to make them show up against the sky.

Such an unusual tree, the baobab. There are several varieties, but this is what I know about this type: very old, huge thick trunk (up to 36′ in diameter) that immediately narrows, and a flattish top. Sometimes it is called an upside down tree, because when it is leafless, it looks as if its roots are sticking up in the air.

Those cape buffalo. . . sigh. I tried a few new ones, then erased the ones on the left. Mrs. Customer was horrified, because she liked them. She loves buffalo – they are her favorite African animal! (I lean toward zebras, those cute little horses in striped pajamas. . .)

Okay, now we’re cooking with gas. If I can see them, I can paint them. The 2 on the left are looking good!

The end of the day: 4 buffalo completed, 3 to go. That thing on the wall is the photo I used for the last 2 buff. Cape buffalo, an interesting animal, one that kills more hunters than any other animal in the entire African continent. It was killing me until I found legible photos.

Only 1/2 day remaining . . . might as well tell you about it now.

Today’s assignment shouldn’t be all that hard: paint 3 cape buffalo from a photo where the shapes are more discernible.

Umm, does anyone know a good veterinarian? These critters look to be in severe distress.

Okay, this is better. It had better be. If I put any more paint on these creatures, you might be able to carve them.

I added more texture to the ground around the herd. Suddenly it all seemed too hard, and I didn’t think any more brush strokes were going to change the mural. It was time to sign it. Customer was away for the day, so if he calls and wants anything changed or messed with, I’ll return.

Since I was unable to lift the scaffolding over the boulder, this is the best photo I could get. I guess a return trip will be necessary.

I will miss Customer and this beautiful drive.

Mineral King mural

Mural #2, Day Three

I may have mentioned that February is my favorite month a couple of times. It still is, in spite of the fact that on this date, 16 years ago, my dad died. Weird. I didn’t think I could make it a week without him around, and now it has been 16 years.

Every morning as I head down the hill to work on the mural, I check out the view. There is a wide turnout with a great view up the canyon, and on some mornings, it is fabulous.

About 2 miles from the mural site there is a stunning field of mustard.

Across the street from the mustard is an old olive grove that my dad owned. (I wonder if Dad would have let all those suckers grow on the base of the trees.) It is a beautiful grove, and I expect it to be torn down for houses in the next handful of years.

Okay, let’s tackle some Tanzanian trees and shrubs and sand and grasses.

I enlarged the photo on my computer screen and then made some little sketches of the different shapes of the trees. It was helpful. Customer was pleased with my progress.

Then, I had to face that herd of cape buffalo. I tried enlarging the photo on my computer, but it was too pixelated. I worked and thought and studied and worked some more.

If I can’t see a thing, it is very hard to paint the thing. One of Customer’s people showed up to relocate the scaffolding for me, and I was relieved to move back to the tree.

To use one of the most overused cliches, “at the end of the day”, this is what I had. Customer said it looks as if Dracula will be coming out of the sky.

mural

Mural #2, Day Two

A guy showed up this a.m. to move the scaffolding out of the way. I drew the base of the tree. Then I redrew it further to the left.

Are you wondering, “What tree??” Just hold on. . .

Then I began painting the distant trees.

A little ground work, more greenery in the distance, and some delineation on the base of the tree.

Another working lunch.

Time to put in a hint of cape buffalo. Customer came by and said the tree was too short – duh. That’s the highest I can reach from the floor! He thought the buffalo were the right size for the location.

I told Customer that it would be helpful if I could see the tree in person. I need to touch it so I can tell the texture. He contemplated having someone chop one down and shipping it here, but quickly abandoned that idea when we began discussing the age. Baobabs are probably as old or even older than our sequoias. He said the bark is smooth.

This is how it looked at the end of another day. Maybe I can finish the lower half tomorrow, and then get the scaffolding back in place at a lower level than before to ~~grow~~ paint the tree.

mural

Mural #2, Day One

It isn’t often that I get to paint 2 murals in the same location. This is one of those rare times. Customer chose his scene, using photographs he took in Tanzania.

indoor mural #2

That’s a herd of cape buffalo. Later he requested a crocodile between the water and the buff.

The logistics are tricky with that bed of rocks, including a boulder.

First steps are the same: tap off the wood, drop a chalk line in the center, get it drawn. Oops, lay out some plastic to protect the floor and the rocks!

Customer has people. Two of his people first placed, then moved the scaffolding to put down the plastic. Nice. While they did that, I mixed paint colors. There wasn’t really anything that needed to be drawn with the sky, so I just dove right in.

Lots of climbing up and down off the scaffolding.

This is the photo I’m working from for the sky. That is the top of Customer’s hat on the bottom left. There is more sky, but I am protecting Customer’s identity and privacy.

Hmmm, needs work, but it is a good start.

Keep painting. Lots of climbing. Stand back, study the shapes, the colors and memorize what to address when you climb back up. Oops, can’t recognize the shapes while on the scaffolding, climb back down and study it again.

At this point, I felt like calling it a day. Alas, it is 22 miles from home, and I am giving myself a tight deadline. Besides, it would be good to not need the scaffolding for Day #2, so I found some internal fortitude and started the tops of the trees and shrubs.

This part will be slower. I was on the scaffolding when Customer showed up. Customer kept telling me to be careful. I kept responding that while I look awkward, I am just fine. We began discussing a few points of the mural, and I climbed down to show him the sketch. I became aware that he was wanting something else on the wall, so together we changed our minds. Bye-bye, green.

He was thinking I might get mad at him. No way! He is a delight to work for, and I want to paint something that he will love. He has expressed his love of the baobab trees over and over, so that’s what will go on the wall. No sketch this time.

Oh. I still have to paint cape buffalo. Oh boy.

mural

Category: Murals