Jan 314 min read

Where’d that mural come from?

Have you ever wondered about where murals originated from and how they got there? Or did everyone just think “oh this is normal” when huge paintings started to surround them in cities?

Buffalo Chips, Bonita Springs 2022

What is a mural?

A mural is any kind of artwork that is painted or applied to a wall or ceiling. This includes paint, fresco, clay, mosaic, graffiti, or marouflage.

In this post I will be going over:

History of murals
Murals today, their impact and purpose
Where they’re popular

The beginning of the mural madness

Murals date back almost 30,000 years in the Chavet cave France. Remember in history class when the teach would go over caves drawings from cave men back in the day? Yep, that would be our purest form of murals. All of the oldest murals date back to BC times. Some of the oldest are in Egypt, Pompeii, and Minoan.

Murals in the middle ages were put together with plaster with the best known mural style, called Fresco.

Fresco is a type of technique that uses water soluble paints and lime wash. Muralists would then apply it to the surface and once it dries the structure and colors start to take shape. This process can make a painting last centuries. This is usually used with oil paints so it sticks to the plaster.

Marouflage is a technique in which you apply a painted canvas to a wall using an adhesive that hardens as it dries, such as plaster or a cement.

There is also Trompe-l’oeil, which is a term that described a technique of painting which “deceives the eye”. It gives the painting a 3-dimensional feel tricking the viewer into thinking what’s painted is real.

3-dimensional underwater mural I did in a bathroom. Bonita Springs, 2022

Todays impact of murals

Today, more and more businesses and home owners are wanting murals painted. The popularity of murals is growing tremendously and not only is it growing but it is an amazing industry to make good money doing what you love (that’s if you love to paint).

I paint both, commissions on canvases and commissioned murals. Murals may look like a lot more work but I honestly get them done faster than canvas paintings sometimes. I suppose because of it being a bigger surface the detail doesn’t need to be so intricate and time consuming.

Today, murals are done with acrylic house paint, spray paint, airbrush, etc. The ideas have become more endless in the mural world. Although, murals now are more of an expression of the artist and less about the materials. They are created with a “sense of community, beautify urban spaces, express historical & cultural identity, raise awareness about social issues, and inspire creativity and wonder.

Fun Fact:

The “Glass City River Wall” is the largest mural in America. This mural is in Toledo, Ohio

Where are murals popular?

What I found on “City-Data.com” was that Philadelphia has a whopping 4,400 murals and is named “Mural Capital of the World” so if you want to go to a specific place to see a mass amount of murals I guess Philly is it!

The following are popular mural cities and their estimated mural count:

Montreal 3,500
New York City 1,500-2,500
Los Angeles 1,500
Toronto 1,000
San Francisco 1,000+
Houston 750+
Winnipeg 600+
Detroit 900+
Miami (Wynwood) 350+

Wynwood of Miami is where I am familiar with the big mural scene, seeing how it is in South Florida where I am based. Its such a cool experience to walk through roads full of murals like Wynwood. My only dislike is that they constantly paint over walls with new murals. I guess they would run out of room at some point but it hurts the artist soul seeing great artwork covered up.

Wynwood Walls, Miami FL. Photograph taken by Midtown Miami Now

Besides these most popular mural towns, murals can be found in most cities, bars, restaurants, malls, large attractions, shit everywhere.

Airbnb’s seem to be a popular clientele for murals more lately than normal home owners. The need to wanting your Airbnb to be fun, creative and homey drives them straight into muralists arms. This is also a way of them putting their hashtags on the walls that guests are taking pictures in front of and tagging the Airbnb which then drives more guests to staying at their listing.

Mermaid Tales Vacation Rental, Fort Myers Beach 2023

Restaurants and bars are doing the same thing with customers taking pictures of their murals or paintings in the bathrooms and tagging that place in the post.

Murals are becoming a sweet option for everyone. Muralists are banking, business owners are driving in more business, homes are becoming more personalized and homey, all the while it’s adding positivity, color, and bliss to public places. It’s like an art museum everywhere you go. I know that I would be more drawn towards a bar that was covered in murals rather than an all white and bright place that makes you feel like you want to leave after one drink.

Murals are something that take a lot of time and creativity. It isn’t a job that’s as easy and straight to the point like showing up, doing inventory, speaking to guests, clock out, go home, do it again the next day. The artist painting the mural has to be inspired and motivated to do that specific piece. I can be a master at painting but if I am not at all driven that day then the painting won’t come out as good. There has been times where I’ve taken too much time off work and unmotivated to get back out there and when I do its like my first time painting. So with that being said, my appreciation for other artists is grand. With technology taking over, it is nice to feel like some original and traditional artwork “by hand” is still being spread all around the world.