ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

 

Craig Grimston is a native Australian with a knack for painting murals that began in the land down under. “I first studied theater set and stage design, and that’s how I got used to painting on large surfaces,” Grimston says. But he quickly discovered that the theater market in his homeland wasn’t very lucrative. So he moved to Dallas in 1996 to work in the medical industry. He says the intercontinental transition was tough, but the “hospitable people here have made it bearable to be away from the beaches of .” After working in the medical industry a few years, a friend commissioned him to paint a mural in his home. Grimston did such a good job, the friend encouraged him to start painting murals for a living. He heeded that advice, and five years later, he’s still a full-time muralist, working with homeowners and business owners to create scenes unique to each client. “If you are spending that money, then why not spend it on something no one else has?” One of the painting effects he uses most often is trompe l’oeil, which basically means to paint something to trick the eye. Grimston says trompe l’oeil is like “painting with a 3-D effect, so if there is a bottle of wine on the window ledge, you should feel like you could go in and pick it up.” He especially enjoys painting the walls of nurseries and children’s rooms because that’s when he can release his creativity most. To view some of Grimston’s work, visit his website muralicious.com or for more information, call him at 469.766.0092.

–ALYSON HALL