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Lifesize Buick Trompe L'oeil Mural

Huck, member

6 users recommend

Here I've let my creativity take over, and my imagination run wild.

I wanted people to do a double-take when they drove by this mural, and now that its completed, the owner tells me I have succeeded in getting his business noticed!

Here you can see my scaffold setup - this was my home away from home for a few weeks (I did this in summer, so I could only work a few hours each day, until the heat made it unbearable).

Once a design and a location for the mural were decided on, I began by sketching in the rough shapes.

Then I started filling in the basic blocks of color.  At this point all the owner knew was that he was getting a Buick mural. 

I had a little surprise in store for him.

There's always a gawker at every project, it seems.

Here I've let my creativity take over, and my imagination run wild.

I wanted people to do a double-take when they drove by this mural, and now that its completed, the owner tells me I have succeeded in getting his business noticed!

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As a general contractor formally trained in illustration and visual arts, I sometimes lay down the skilsaw for a paintbrush.  In this case I painted a 1948 Buick Super, in a life-sized mural at Automotive Technical Service, 3118 Union Avenue, in Bakersfield CA, for my friend the owner, Andy Texeira.

First and foremost, I wanted to paint something that would make the building noticeable, and memorable.

Since I use and recommend this mechanic's shop, I have often had to describe its location to friends and associates - most of whom had driven past it numerous times, but never even noticed it (as often happens with small nondescript businesses along a busy city street).

In a sense, I was trying to create a "landmark", attempting to make it both striking and unusual.

My goal however was not to paint this to look like a real car crash (the car is pristine, no scratches or dents) - my goal was to make it look staged - like a sophisticated promotional display designed to catch the eye of passers-by. And the fictional "observer" was to look like an average pedestrian stopping to look up at the display with a "ho-hum" kind of curiosity.

The safety cones and yellow tape were an added trompe l'oeil detail, the goal of which was to get passing observers to question just how much of what they just saw was fictional, and how much was real.

I wasn't seeking to create a "charming" mural - I really wanted this mural to be a work of art in its own right. Whether I succeeded you can decide for yourself.

I think trompe l'oeil painting seeks to engage the viewer almost as a painting that somehow escaped from its frame and crossed over into the Real World.

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