How to make a living painting murals

by Artie Romero

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Tips for aspiring mural artists

To be a successful mural artist, besides being a good painter, you must also be a good business person. Here are some important things to remember about painting murals:

• First of all, try to avoid talking about the price of the mural. If they flat out ask you how much you plan to charge, ask them questions about the project. Talk about the particular artwork that is desired, and help your client get excited about their ideas. By doing this and taking notes, you will be more likely to delight your patron with the finished mural. And trust me, the longer you avoid talking about money, the more you will ultimately get.
• Don't undervalue your work, and don't be afraid to quote what it's really worth. This is not a category of art where people are trying to save money; it's a luxury item and should be priced as such. Carefully calculate your materials cost for the project, add a reasonable hourly rate for yourself, figure out how long the work will take you, and factor everything out. Take the resulting total and then triple it. Confidently quote that high price to the patron, and even if they laugh, you will still be in a good negotiating position for a favorable flat rate price. Surprisingly, many patrons are happy to pay the asking price.
• Instead of oil or acrylic paints from an art supply store, try using acrylic housepaint. It's easy to work with, and clean-up is a breeze. Quarts and gallons of mis-tinted house paint can be purchased for pennies on the dollar!
• After discussing the project in detail, take a down payment of one-third of the contract total. If they are not willing to give you a substantial retainer, you need to have walk-away power. And don't ever start any work without an agreement and a down payment.
• Start with quick pencil sketches or reference photos to get buy-in from your patron on the design. Then paint the mural in miniature, and get this sketch approved before you start the final work. Ask the patron to sign off on the approved sketches.
• Don't try to blow up your sketch by eye or by using a grid system. Always use an overhead projector or computer projector in the darkened room. Even if you have to rent a projector, it will be worth it to transfer your sketch with its proper proportions intact. You want the finished work to be faithful to the sketches.
• Paint with a big brush. The result is more pleasing when you avoid getting into a lot of niddling detail. You are going for an impression rather than a masterpiece. Most of the classic impressionists were very good at creating crowd-pleasing paintings.
• Remember that a mural is more in line with decor than with fine art as seen in galleries. Keep the color scheme simple, for instance use all earth colors on a landscape, limited colors on a graphic design, or at most a limited range of analogous colors. Too many loud colors can be annoying in a landscape and end up looking tacky.
• Landscapes are the most common subject matter, and sweeping panoramas are popular. To give your painting depth, aerial perspective is your best friend. Aerial perspective, also called atmospheric perspective, means that things far away are seen through more layers of atmosphere, generally dulling and lightening the colors of objects. In this vein, be sure that the sky is the deepest color at the top and gets gradually lightened toward the horizon. While we are on the subject of skies, clouds seen from below (usually at the top of your painting) can be more rounded and poofy, but near the horizon the far-away clouds appear much flatter.

Ask the client if they might want to remove the mural if they ever move. If so, a solution is to paint on a panel or a series of panels. In this set of circumstances, remember that you are not a carpenter. Let the patron hire a contractor to install the piece, and spare yourself the liability of the installation.