MURALS BY LORI SHRIDHARE
mural has a way of bringing the best of both art and signage together—a painting that’s displayed for public consumption and appreciation and larger than life with beauty usually at its core. This is the impression one gets in viewing the work of many traditional mural artists today. While digitally printed murals make for creative wall displays and can enhance a corporate or retail atmosphere as “wallpaper,” there’s an artistry component that traditional painting brings to surfaces. These days, most mural artists make a living by diversifying their clientele, receiving public art commissions and private work, and taking on projects for both non-profit and profit clients. This is precisely the balance that one Los Angeles-based artist has struck
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Sign Builder Illustrated
June 2017
over the last fifteen years—and with Hollywood nearby, she’s fortunate to have Robert Downey Jr., P!nk, Train, Snoop Dogg, and other celebrities on her list of clients. Jeanine Hattas Wilson began her career in advertising and transitioned to painting murals in 2002 when she launched her business, Hattas Public Murals, Inc. (www.hattas.com), in Milwaukee, primarily for homeowners. After relocating to her home city of Chicago to work with interior designers and take on corporate clients, Wilson eventually moved to Los Angeles in 2009. “The warm weather was a nice change for the obvious reasons, but it also allowed for considerably more exterior work,” she says. Living in a metropolis has allowed her to not only work for prominent clients
in the entertainment, government, business, design, and building sectors, but it has also allowed her to connect with artists who have joined her business. Currently muralist Ian Burgess and graphic designer and illustrator Julie Kennedy are on her team. Taking her cues from the philosophy that public art helps define a city and its people, Wilson shapes her approach to creating murals—for all of her clients—by envisioning them as works of public art. “When working on a public mural, we understand that the work belongs to the public,” she says. “We consider what the city or organization represents, what gives its residents or members pride, and what messages are important to convey. “When you close your eyes and imagsignshop.com
All Photos: Hattas Public Murals, Inc.
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