Blue Bird
with Triangles & Stripes
This past September, as a part of the Boulder Creative Neighborhoods Mural Program hosted by Boulder Arts & Culture, WORKSHOP8 was chosen to paint another mural! Located at 19th & Quince Avenue in North Boulder, this program pairs artists with homeowners through a City-based public art program.
Step 1: Create the Design
One night I stayed late at the studio, searched for images that struck my fancy, and came up with a couple dozen ideas which I presented to the W8 team. Once we had selected our favorites, I made some changes and then presented several to the homeowners who made the final selection. Maris and I picked out the paint colors and we were ready to roll.
Step 2: Dimension the Layout and Outline the Artwork
Marcel was the first on-site with his level, tape measure and chalk string. He measured out and snapped lines for all the triangles. Kristina sketched the bird out in chalk, and I sketched out the flower. Joseph laid out the stripes with a cardboard template that Marcel made at home.
Step 3: Color in the Lines
It was a very hot day, but armed with ice coffee, we came together to create a mural for community enjoyment.
Step 4: PAUSE FOR PHOTOSHOOT
Our installation team included: Maris, Marcel, Chelsea, Kristina, Mitch, Alex, Cesar, Joseph and me. The mural of giant hops next to ours was designed and painted by Sam Cikauskas who joined us for this photo.
Step 4: Details, details, details!
Chelsea worked and reworked those triangles all day long! She wanted them as perfect as she could get them. Painting straight lines on a wood fence just isn’t that easy, but she was determined.
Step 5 [12 hours later]: Give yourself a pat on the back
We worked until it was too dark to see any more. I went back the next day to give the birdy her yellow beak and red string.
Step 6: Make a super cool production video!
Ivan wasn’t around to help us on painting day, but he made this cool time-lapse video for us.
It’s a Wrap
Painting a mural is a fun team bonding activity, and we received positive feedback from the community for our design. To the right, you can see hops mural by Sam.
Thank You
We want to thank our friends at Sherin-Williams in Boulder for donating paint for the cause. Here’s a guide to the colors featured in the mural:
- Rayo de Sol (bird beak)
- Rave Red (bird string)
- Samovar Silver (flower background)
- Connor’s Lakefront (flower foreground)
- Spa (light triangles& stripes)
- Calypso (medium triangles & bird body)
- Really Teal (dark triangles & bird wings)
- Ebbtide (bird tail)
- Caviar and Ceiling Bright White (bird details)
Thanks for reading!
Brandy LeMae
Creative Director & CEO
Here we are flashing our W8 gang sign.
—Photo credit goes to our talented friend, Kelsey Huffer, at Poppy & Co.
