Summoning Magic on Fabric
By Gina Dostler
A lemur, wombat and angora goat hang in two-dimensional form over a crib, keeping watch where a baby sleeps. And the landscape of a Tuscany vineyard transports a dining room into another realm, the wall a painted portal to Italy for every diner.
These are among the worlds created by Gabrielle Carey, a mural artist who brings the exterior world into the interior of homes. She grew up amongst goats, chickens, horses and pigs, which gave her the inspiration to paint the animal murals she loves. They seem to be an extension of her self and the magical world that spins in her mind.
Her clients have included the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Las Vegas, John Travolta and Kelly Preston, Eddie Murphy and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. It’s a treat to have her as one of our local artists in Southern California.
Q: Why paint murals?
A: I truly love what I do, painting murals, engaging my talents and working with clients to bring about a personal treasure that is unique only to their home. Actually as a child I didn’t want to be an artist, thinking I’d be stuck in a cubicle as an animator. I went to school instead as a political science major and while studying I found myself working at a part-time job under the tutelage of Roger Dolin at Mural Environments, Inc., and fell in love with this form of art. It’s especially wonderful for children, enriching their imaginations through engaging them with art on the walls. It’s also for adults, a mural bringing a certain feeling not always captured through décor. The effect can be quite elegant.
Q: You actually work from a studio, not in the homes?
A: Actually yes, since I had my son three years ago, half of my work is out of the studio. Sometimes I do paint inside the home, but many times the work is too far away since I ship all across the country. And I work mostly in high-end homes and they tend to want you in and out fairly quickly. They want to see it completed as soon as possible. Working out of my Costa Mesa studio is actually great and I love it. I work on specialty mural fabric that comes in big rolls. This stuff doesn’t shrink up, it allows me to cut very detailed lines and can be stuck on like wallpaper. I call them Panemals. I also do muslin and canvas, but it depends on the space and other requirements.
Q: Panemals then can be any shape or size?
A: That’s correct. The fabric is a cellulose-based product that is non-toxic. And all my acrylic paints are non-toxic as well. The finished painting is trimmed precisely and with meticulous detail. The feel of the finished product is thinner than washed denim and almost as pliable, and just about as durable. I can paint anything from a small single butterfly to a four foot elephant as well as extra large panels, roll it up, place it in a tube and mail it out. Or bring it to a home to add it to a wall I painted with lesser detail, such as a background. The smaller pieces can be taken down and reapplied on another wall.
Q: Why paint on canvas or muslin then?
A: Muslin has long been used as a substrate for murals since it is lighter than canvas and is available in virtually any width, making it ideal for projects where no seams are preferred. Muslin also works well for upholstered walls. Canvas has a more prominent texture than muslin and is a good choice for artwork that is either to be stretched on a wood frame or hung directly on a wall where the turned-under edges are desired. I’m actually working on a project for a client using canvas. It’s for her daughter’s birthday party.
Q: Can you tell me a little about the project?
A: She lives in Beverly Hills and has been my client for many years. I’ve painted several murals for her rooms. But she puts on very beautiful and elaborate parties and I do all her signage for her. This one project, the canvas is going to drop and cover the opened garage (leaving the space behind the sign for all their staging) and is a beautiful birthday sign based on the Nancy Drew series of books. I’m also painting lemonade stands with The Hardy Boys type theme across the top, all done out of my studio. It’s really all so much fun.
Q: How does the process work, getting a mural for a home?
A: Most people come to me and say they have an idea or at least a subject they’d like to have painted. To help me understand what they want, I ask what is the “feel” they want, for instance the feel of walking in a garden, or maybe a theme from a book. This helps me narrow down what they want the room to be like and then I can produce sketches based on their answers. If local, I like to meet the client, take measurements of the room and draw scaled renderings to depict where all the furniture is going so none of the important pieces of the mural gets covered up. This maximizes the client’s budget since I’m not spending time painting something that won’t be seen.
Q: How are your murals unique?
A: I love doing little vignettes inside paintings. By speaking with my clients I learn little things about their interests. One client’s mural for their child’s room has a Noah theme with lots of animals and I included a beaver’s tail patting a liberty bell he made out of sand. The client’s husband is an American history buff so the bell makes the mural a more personal and intimate piece. I also like to include a bit of whimsy in my work. In this same piece, I have a small frog jumping in the air wearing baggy swim shorts while a squirrel with a ball gets ready to throw it into a basket hanging from a hovering dove. To see my work in person, at the end of May I’ll be doing a super cute piece for a wall in Newport Cottages located in Fashion Island. We’re thinking of having a colorful hot air balloon filled with quirky animals looking out over the edge of the basket flying up into the air.
Gabrielle Carey, Mural Artist
2390 Grace Lane, #G
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
949-612-8082
www.gabriellecarey.com
