Modern designers have no limits and barriers in terms of implementing the most daring decisions and fantasies. The experience of generations in combination with advanced technologies allows using skills and techniques for creating unique design projects. Wall painting is one of the most original and multi-faceted design techniques for creating a truly unique interior. At the same time, today, the wall painting is understood not only the use of classical techniques for creating complex, multi-layered compositions, but also the use of techniques available to most people, such as screen printing, drawing with prints and other street art methods. Wall painting is able to radically change the image of your home without using any structural renovation and re-planning. Wall painting is able to cope perfectly with such tasks as creating an accent or highlighting the most advantageous zone, visual changing the parameters of the room or disguising the unsuccessful architectural features or flaws in the finish. We suggest you to get acquainted with our large selection of design projects of various premises in which the wall painting technique was used and be inspired for your own accomplishments.
Features of Design Method
First of all, it is necessary to determine what is currently understood by such a design method as “wall painting”. The most ancient art which is taking its origins from the Egyptian and Sumerian civilization has not lost popularity in our days. But, of course, not only the techniques and materials used to create images on the walls have undergone changes with the course of history but the very principle of decorating the dwelling (and public buildings) has changed radically. In our time, artists (designers) do not need to leave messages to descendants in the form of murals. This method is used exclusively for decorative purposes.
Many homeowners, who plan to renovation or a small alteration in their homes, believe that there is no point in wasting time and money on creating a unique painting on the walls, because there are enough incredibly realistic photo wallpapers with high quality images. And they are partly right. Finding a suitable plot in the store on the photo wallpaper will not be difficult. But the interior created with their help will not be unique, will not bear a part of the artist’s warmth. And in case you make a wall painting all by yourself, it will also transmit your individual look at the aesthetics, the way you look on decorating of your own home.
Choosing the Plot for the Painting
Today, an incredibly wide range of themes and stylistic solutions is available to paint walls in the interior. With the help of modern materials and an individual view of the artist (who can be you), you can create unique masterpieces – from traditional frescoes to graffiti.
Of course, the following criteria will influence the choice of the theme and the color palette of the image on the wall:
- the type of the room (if in the children’s room it is logical to depict the cartoon and fairy-tale heroes; the landscape or abstraction will look spectacular the living room or bedroom, then in the dining room you can portray bright fruits, berries – for raising appetite);
- the size of the room and its layout (the number and location of doorways and windows);
- the arrangement of the room with respect to the sides of the light and, as a consequence, the level of natural illumination;
- style of execution of the interior (it would be strange to depict a classic fresco in a room with a modern design and graphic handprints of family members as a composition in a room with traditional stylistics);
- Your personal preferences in the style of image execution and the choice of color solutions.
Wall Painting in the Interior: Stylistic Solutions
In order to navigate the entire variety of themes for painting the walls of a modern dwelling (we omit the options for creating images for public buildings), it is necessary to at least superficially acquaint with the stylistic solutions.
Classic Style
Classic in the interior will never go out of fashion. It is not by chance that this trend in the design of spaces is considered traditional. It represents the harmony of shapes and lines, combinations of color and materials. In wall paintings, this is most often reflected in the image of the ideal landscape. It is as realistic as it is the reflection of the dream of the “golden age”. Choosing a classic style for decorating walls, you leave behind banality and monotony. It’s amazing, but nowadays the classic in wall painting looks more relevant than High-tech, Minimalism or Loft. It is remarkable that for execution of a drawing in a classical style it is possible to use the advanced materials and methods.
Baroque and Empire
These are two opposite lines in the development of classicism. If Baroque seeks a demonstration of luxury, extensive decoration, then the Empire tries to join laconism, the use of simple solutions. Both directions are relevant for use in the painting of residential spaces. But much depends on the overall stylistics of the interior design, the size of the premises and so to speak the general scope.
Art Nouveau
This style of painting is easy to recognize by the predominance of “lush”, “living” and literally “breathing” forms. A characteristic feature is the use of a compound ornamental flower pattern with a predominance of wavy lines. The color palette mainly consists of natural shades. Bright, screaming tones are used extremely rarely.
Japanese style
Currently, the Japanese style is manifested not only in applying traditional oriental landscapes, images of cherry trees or small courtyards with a characteristic landscape design when painting walls. The Japanese style is also an anime, full of details, characteristic attributes, allowing even unfamiliar person to unmistakably recognize the handwriting of this hobby that fascinated many people. Plant motifs, images of landscapes, and sometimes fragments of Eastern nature became more widespread in US lately.
Minimalism and Primitivism
The name speaks for itself: to express the artist’s thoughts, a minimal set of color combinations, lines and shapes is used. It can be just one strip or figure, executed in contrasting color, but thanks to the balance, the drawing becomes a symbol of the designer’s imagination.
Wall Painting: Decorative Component in Various Rooms
In addition to the obvious decorative component, wall painting can have quite specific functional purposes. For example, with the help of wall painting, you can visually change the architecture of the room, make it wider, “deeper”, “raise” the ceiling or even “blur” the boundaries of space. Wall painting can also act as a zoning element, delineating the functional segments of a combined room. Wall images can focus on a particular area of the room, highlighting the most advantageous elements of the interior, “pulling” attention from unsuccessful ones.
Children’s Room
At present, the undisputed leader in the creation of wall paintings is the interior of the children’s room. And it is not surprising. It is for the child that we want to create an amazing world in which it will be interesting for him or her not only to sleep, play and spend time, but also to develop, to gain new knowledge and skills. And everyone knows that any knowledge is perceived by children much easier if presented in a game form. With the help of wall painting you can create any of the variants of fairy-tale worlds. Of course, there are photo wallpapers and interior stickers that will cost a lot less but, firstly, it is not always possible to find decorative material suitable for the subject interesting to the child and secondly, hand painting the wall will always be in the first place by exclusivity, and artistry.
Living room
Wall painting in the living room will create not only the highlight of the interior, enhance the exclusivity of the premises, but also create a certain accentuation. At the same time, this design technique is relevant for both small and spacious living rooms, where several functional segments are connected. But the dimensions of space, of course, must be taken into account when choosing an image to create an artistic painting.
Bedroom
Most often people choose a romantic style of execution of drawing on the walls for sleeping rooms. The majority of people try to create the most relaxing and soothing atmosphere in the room for sleep and rest. Therefore, gentle shades in the image of floral motifs or light landscapes become a central theme in the interior of the bedroom.
Techniques Used in Creating the Murals on the Walls
Modern designers have almost no restrictions in the choice of techniques for creating wall paintings. The experience of generations and modern materials, and tools are at their services. The image can be applied both on a perfectly smooth surface and on a textured surface – the weight depends on the goal. Most often when creating images on the walls of modern artists use:
- oil;
- acrylic;
- fluorescent paints.
A very popular tool for creating an original wall mural is an airbrush. You can create a drawing without traces of smears and abrupt transitions between color solutions on an ideally flat surface. Let’s review the most popular techniques used to paint walls in modern homes.
Aerography
It is quite popular technology at the moment. Air indeed play an important role in the use of airbrush. With the help of compressed air, the paint is sprayed onto the previously prepared surface. The resulting images turns light, literally airy with subtle color transitions.
Fresco
The oldest technique, based on the painting on raw plaster, is relevant at all times. The characteristic texture of this technique is recognizable in any version. The resulting image has a high wear resistance. Not without reason many of the oldest frescoes have survived to this day. At present, the technique of fresco is used both for creating samples of modern painting, and for imitating ancient wall paintings (for this purpose one resorts to artificial aging of the surface, patting).
Fluorescent paint
It’s easy to guess that the technique is based on the use of fluorescent inks that glow in the dark. A unique image can be created with the help of various color solutions of these special paints. But the technique was most widely used to decorate the ceiling in the form of a starry sky. In addition to the fantastic effect, it brings a feeling of dimensionless space.
Volumetric painting
Using volumetric painting, you can visually erase the boundaries of the room; make the ceiling “higher”, and the room “wider”. Of course, the painting does not affect the design features of the room, but it visually creates the effect of some curvature of the volume of space. Designers like to portray stairs that go into the distance and seem to have no end or open windows behind which opens a beautiful landscape.
Use of stencils
For those who wish to prove themselves from the artistic side, literally “leave an imprint” on the walls of their own home, screen printing is an ideal way. It does not require special skills, because it is based on applying images using ready-made stencils, which you can create yourself or buy in a store.
Painting with Acrylic Paints
The use of acrylic paints is incredibly popular now and this is due to a number of advantages of these materials for applying images on a wide variety of surfaces:
- quick drying;
- absence of smell;
- high ecological compatibility;
- ease of application;
- the possibility of using on surfaces with different texture;
- resistance to ultraviolet light.
