Top 7 Mistakes People make in Finding a Muralist by Artist Nikki

by Artist Nikki Nichols
(Lake Wales, FL 33853 )

1) Not asking to see a portfolio: It is important to see the past work of an artist, their scope of talent and what genre they predominantly have been asked to do in the past. (I.e.) A Predominately Landscape Artist is probably not the best choice for a Portrait Mural.

2) Not asking for References: It is important to get several references from the artist to hear what other clients have to say about their work. Are they timely, professional, easy to work with, etc.? You may not be aware you are interviewing a hobbyist, not a professional artist and just may end up with them taking up residency in your business or home for 6 months or more. Most clients don’t have the patience or the time for this.

3) Not asking about License, Liability Coverage, Contracts, Company Policies, and State Vending etc. These are common business practices to protect clients and promote client satisfaction. Make sure you get what you want and all the risk is not yours.

4) Shopping and Comparing Products: Currently on the market are wonderful quick application products being used for murals, faux and so on, cost is comparable to a hand painted murals and may even be cheaper. However generally these products lasting 2 years as opposed to 10, fade in UV light, are limited in size availability, are mass produced with no investment value, are not easily repaired when damaged, as difficult to remove as wall paper, and can not be pressure washed or cleaned. A professional artist knows to use for example different products for different projects based on product pigment, base, durability etc. For example a product used for a pool bottom is completely different than what is used for an indoor mural.

5) Not knowing the formal training of the muralist and what awards they’ve won? A muralist should be able to provide you with an invest in your home/business that increases in value yearly. Although there are wonderful self taught artists out there who do wonderful work. A formal art education (training in techniques, perspective, contrast, 2 point line drawings, figure drawing etc.) long with an artists’ awards can insure that you are saving yourself time along with money and are ultimately investing in your home/business/assets.

6) Using a mural/referral service to find a muralist: More often than not these services are a scam for you and muralist. Here’s how: These sites or referral services get money monthly along with examples/pictures of work from an artist, then market the work to you offering to match you to the best artist suited for your needs in your area. However here is the rub, the website/ referral service are generally managed by a muralist/artist/agent/marketer/ who typically refer only their own artists or those paying top dollar for the referral service who will give them significant return on a project, which you ultimately pay for. The solution to this is to ask for referrals from people in your area, call around to galleries ask for names, look for a name and contact information on an existing mural that has caught your eye. Get together a list of artists and interview them. Most reputable artists will give you a free estimate along with design ideas.

7) Not knowing what you want: I have found in doing this for 30 years most people already have an idea of what they want, they have cut out pictures or have seen something similar to what they want in a parade of homes, magazines, towns they have visited etc. Research, assessment, project development are the tools used to by an artist to bring these ideas into life. It is important to be on the same page with your artist and have discussions with them during the process of development. You would not for example ask an artist for a Florida landscape then decide you want a Disney mural. This will not only frustrate you and the artist but will cost you more to have changed.

We hope you enjoyed this article and found it helpful, to search for other free services Art de Vie Studio’s offers, sign up for our newsletter, revisit www.artdeviebynikki.com. Hope to see you again soon, until then live artfully. Artist Nikki