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Last week I painted a mural at Oakland Children's Hospital in the NICU conference room.  As with so many of my murals, the gifts that I receive from my paintings through the people I meet are just as valuable as the gift I leave behind.  Last week I had the pleasure of meeting Peggy Thomas.  Peggy's life is full.  Really full.  She currently has seven children from "disrupted adoptions" that she homeschools, a husband recently disabled in a car accident, a grandson with SMARD who is not likely to live past two years old, and piecing it all together with work as a hairdresser.   But this dear, dear angel does more acts of kindness before breakfast than I do in a whole month.  She is a lightning bolt of grace, full of grounded, loving energy and not shy about breaking her guitar out and sharing songs with the children in the NICU, at a senior care home, and even with me as I painted my mural.  Her kids have come a long way under her care, and they all clearly adore her.

When Peggy Thomas and her daughter Danielle were to receive the news of Logan's condition, the hospital staff brought them into a bleak, windowless conference room to deliver the news.   Instead of falling in to self pity, Peggy looked around and said, "This is just awful for me.  But I feel even worse for my daughter and everyone else dealing with a child in a crisis has to grapple with this information and decisions in such a bleak place".  Peggy took it upon herself to make a difference where she could:  she started a fundraising campaign, dealt with hospital beaurocracy, and worked closely with me to develop the vision of beauty she wanted to bring to the bleak NICU conference room.  The mural was a huge success, and many of the staff stopped by to comment on what a difference it made to the space, and what a difference it would make for the patients families.

My take away was the example Peggy set for me.  She was fearless and diligent in focusing her energy to bring light and beauty to where she saw it was needed.   It was a true pleasure to meet and work with her.

Here are some additional comments from Peggy's partner in crime, Cassandra, who helped give the historical perspective to the purpose of the hospital and how we could incorporate that into the mural:

"I think the mural is exquisite and perfect.  You know I have had to really contain myself and not see continuous connections between my miraculous time in Florence at the Ospedale degli Innocenti and so I was at peace with the removal of the medallions. However, when I saw the mural I nearly cried for a realize that the medallion's inclusions would have taken away what for me is a profound and mystical bridge between the two faces--you see basically the mural looks exactly like we (in the room) are standing inside the loggia of the Ospedale degli Innocenti and looking out to the sea that connects the two continents.  The sea is the beautiful and endless eternity of love that floats out forever from the Piazza Santissima Annunziata...I would have to have you and your family standing beside me in Florence in that Loggia so you would see what I see.  Maybe some day that will happen--the odds are very high indeed I shall be spending much of my life in Italy.  There is another person who knows the Piazza as well as I do in Florence and he has seen exactly what I have seen in the mural and because he hasn't met you in person, is more surprised by the connection than I was...."

I had a molar pulled out yesterday and was condemned to two weeks of eating soft foods.  I love to be creative in the kitchen, and I love to eat tasty food.  One of the ways that my healthy rebelliousness comes out is that I never follow recipes.  What fun is a recipe?  Invention is so much more exciting and rewarding.   Today I remembered the old adage "necessity is the mother of all invention."  Well, I thought, I am sure I can invent something that is soft and tasty....  I assessed what I felt like eating (something hearty and savory), and what I had in the fridge (stale bread and two zucchini).  I set to work in my "food art" studio and sauteed up an onion, garlic, and zucchini with some fresh sage from my garden.  Towards the end I added two slices of buttered, hearty wheat toast and let it melt into the veggies.  I also added a sprinkling of white wine for moisture and another layer of savory flavor and let it all get nice and soft together.  I topped my "zucchini saute" with fresh avocado.  Another adage that comes to mind is "hunger is the best seasoning".  It was out of this world delicious!

I don't have a recipe to share with you today because I want to encourage you to express your own creativity in the kitchen.   Some people are intimidated by a blank canvas and art supplies.  Relax!  There is no such thing as a mistake.  Only opportunities for learning.  But if you feel intimidated by testing out your creative muscle, the kitchen is a very safe place to begin.  Have fun!  Work with what you've got!  Truly, that is the oldest tradition in the human cuisine history.

Dear Morgan,
I was wondering if you have any pointers or tips to give. I am an artist in Canada, and I am trying to start my own mural business. Any input would be helpful.
Thank you,
Ana Thistle

I frequently get inquiries from artists trying to get started in their own mural business if I can give them any advice.  Here is my response.

Getting Started
Find at least 5 walls to paint. Your parents, siblings friends, and local coffee shop are all good candidates. The experience is so much more important than the payment. You will learn how to organize your stuff, learn a system that works for you so you don’t get paint anywhere except the wall, figure out what tools, brushes, and paints you like to use, and how to communicate with a client about your painting. You will learn if it is actually something you like doing. You will learn how long it takes for you to paint a mural. If it takes you two months to paint a small wall, you will have a hard time making a living as a mural artist.

The Basics
Take pictures of each mural.  Build a website and put the photos up. Make a business card. Make sure your voice mail is professional and says your business name. Define your niche through your first projects. People will be able to see what you do best, and that is what you should promote.

Marketing
When you have the opportunity to talk about yourself with new people, tell them about the great service you offer: “I specialize in large landscape murals.” Don’t tell them, “Well, I am taking a pottery class, but thinking seriously about painting murals and also I am selling my jewelry at the craft faire next weekend.” If someone says to you, “I go to a gym that has a big dark basement that needs a mural”, thank them profusely for thinking of you! Then call -or better yet stop by-that gym the next business day and follow up. That is a lead! If the job pans out, let them know and recognize the “referrer” either with a thank you note or a gift of appreciation. Building your business through referrals and word of mouth is a great way to go. But you have to have the website and professional skills to really make it grow.

Pricing
This is going to vary greatly based on where you live and your level of experience. After I had been painting murals for about 5 years, I moved to the bay area. A year or so in, I had to call an electrician out to install a light fixture. I realized he was charging double what I charged. I think initially your pricing needs to be relative to what other home services professionals charge in your area, based on how much skill and time is required to master that service. I currently base my prices on a price per square foot that includes all taxes, design and materials so that it is easy for the client to know exactly how much a project will cost. Never increase your price later if there are unforeseen expenses or it takes longer. That is your fault, not the clients. If a client has a major change or addition, then discuss the additional charges up front.

Practice
I am a big fan of Malcolm Gladwells premise in Outliers that it takes 10,000 hours to begin to gain mastery in any particular skill. You should be painting almost every day. Show up to work every day and don’t let anything get in the way of your painting time. Paid, unpaid, just paint. I did not take classes, but if having a false deadline of an assignment helps you to spend time with your paints, then take a class. But experience is your greatest teacher, so give yourself lots of time to paint.

Customer Service
I often show up at jobs where the client will complain about their experience with a previous artist. Maybe the artist did not communicate about the timing or their schedule, or they were not thoughtful of the customer in some way. It is possible to be an artist and a professional. Being professional to me means that the client understands everything about the process, that everything is clear and consistent so that the client can relax and enjoy the experience. If you are going to price yourself like a professional, you need to operate like a professional person. If you were to call an electrician, and they called you back two days later, do you think you would hire that electrician? Art is a different skill set, but taking good care of customers seems appropriate to me no matter what business you are in.

Additional Reading
Here are some books I have found helpful on my journey:
The Artists Way by Julia Cameron
Finding Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell
Talent is Overrated by Geoffrey Colvin
Mindset by Carol S. Dweck

Think of all the blank walls there are in the world just waiting for your time and vision! Have fun building your art business!
Best of luck to you,
Morgan