35~ Mural 2012: Scalloped Roofs

While I was working on the music-room door ~ a two-day project, at least ~ Brenda needed something to do. She thought she could draw the scalloped roofs we had planned for the bay windows and main entrance. I made her a pattern and got her started. She drew scallops on the main door and the bay windows. Brenda and Annette were both set on copper for the roof. They wanted me to use the metallic copper. I explained that a flat metallic color probably wouldn't look that well, but I promised to do a copper roof. I did want copper ~ just not a flat metallic paint.

Painting a mural is just not the same as painting a house or a wall (even though the artist is, technically, painting a wall). After Brenda drew the scallops, I took a break from painting the music-room door to mix the paint for the scallops. On features like this, it only takes slight differences in colors to give the appearance of texture and give it a three-dimensional, trompe-l'oeil quality. I mixed three different shades of sienna and brown. Then I went back over each shingle shape with a quick, curved swipe of paint. I don't specifically remember if I double-dipped the two colors, or just went over each shingle twice, alternating colors. After it was all done, I swiped each one with metallic copper. It wasn't absolutely necessary, but it really did make the shingles pop with color. I touched the lanterns with a little more copper to match.

I put scalloped shingles on both bay-window roofs and this central, main entrance. I broke up the work into bits, since it was so tiring to stand on a ladder and reach over my head to paint.

We worked on those scalloped roofs for at least two-and-a-half days, though not steadily. While I would paint one, Brenda would use the pattern to draw off the other. When I got tired of standing on the ladder, I'd take a break or go and work on the music-room door.


  

Mural 2012: Wednesday, November 7, 2012 (Scalloped Roof)