Dream Bird Henna Flowers - Playroom Mural for the Mitra Family

Caroline Truong November 8, 2022

The Mitras are a family of 4 who are one of the most quirky, intelligent, creative, and humble clients I’ve had the pleasure to serve. The family already owns a collection of my Dream Bird paintings and prints, which then led to commissioning custom art for their home.

When they reached out to me for a Dream Bird Mural to brighten up the kid's playroom, I was both excited and nervous. Excited to make custom art for a client who already loves Dream Bird style. Nervous that it was the first mural I’d be doing in someone’s sacred space - their home.

This mural was completed Winter of 2021. When I had my 2nd child in May 2020, I stayed home, on lockdown, avoiding any and all germs and people, with my toddler and baby. It felt strange going back to work, interacting physically close with people, and being in someone else’s personal space.

Unexpected Feedback

It took me building several concepts to finally realize how to approach this project. My primary goal was to incorporate an element from their heritage, which ending up being flowers inspired by henna patterns from their wedding.

After the initial concept failed to spark joy in the client, Mama Mitra encouraged me to stick to my unique style which she felt was lacking. Fortunately, Mama Mitra is skilled in providing constructive feedback. Her expertise is in coaching, public speaking, and facilitation. This made having conversations about the final concept to be productive and empowering.

Sketch 1: I recall the client saying it looked like wallpaper, which is correct. Wallpaper was what I was going for. But why was I going for wallpaper? And where is Dream Bird?

It’s not what Mama Mitra loves about her current Dream Bird art collection. I started from scratch and made a new concept.

Having a client point out that my own style is missing from my art was an eye opening. This has been the problem all long. The Mitras were exceptionally patient while I took time to get over my insecurities as an artist to put forth my best work.

Sketch 2: Mama Mitra loves the chrysanthemum mural I did for Roostar Spring Branch, so in they went and we both love the direction it’s going.

Sketch 3 / Final Concept: I added 2 Dream Birds that represent their 2 kids and more henna inspired patterns.

Takeaways Beyond the Art

Artistic Practice: I became aware of my shortcomings as an artist that I need to overcome if I want to keep going. In order to develop a unique artistic style, I have to keep painting what I want, in my own way. Trust my artistic instincts when it comes to design and have fun sketching. If I’m not having fun, then it’s not me. In this mural, I developed a new kind of flower pattern, which I still use today.

Mama Mitra and I in front of the completed mural.

Business: I learned a crucial lesson in customer service of inundating the client with too many options. A background color had to be chosen and I presented too many options making it overwhelming.

Personal: Mama Mitra has became a friend. She’s been a voice of empowerment throughout the creative process which is not at all typical. As the artist, I need to be the one leading the process and now I understand how to do it.

Thank you Mitra family for letting me into your home!

Progress Shots

The blank wall with a sample of background colors painted on for the client to choose.

After sketching the design, I painted the background first.

I worked on the most challenging part first, which is the bottom henna inspired pattern that required radial symmetry.

Completed Mural

Dream Bird Henna Flowers, 2021. 9ft tall x 14 ft wide.

Breathe, Smile, Love - Murals for Maxwello Dental

Caroline Truong September 30, 2022

Dr. Letitia Plummer and I in front of the blank walls during the first site visit.

I had the pleasure of painting a set of murals for Dr. Letitia Plummer at her dental practice in Pearland, Texas. Dr. Plummer has been practicing dentistry for over 20 years and is a Houston City Council Member. You can hear her speak on local topics during episodes of the Houston Public Media Houston Matters Podcasts.

With that being said, the project was a breeze because of a few things…

Similar Attitudes & Artistic Styles

On Maxwello Dental’s website, there is a video of Dr. Plummer speaking on why she became a dentist and how she runs her practice. Dr. Plummer says when you come to her practice, “you’re not just a number… you’re a name with a face with a family”. She also speaks on running her practice like she runs her life. For example, working hours for staff is conducive to having time after work to spend with families. They schedule patients within hours that won’t keep the staff late or in time to pick up kids from school.

As a client, Dr. Plummer was adaptable to my schedule. I’m upfront about being unable to meet quick and concrete deadlines because I choose to set my work hours around my kids’ school hours. My toddler also gets sick frequently from all the viruses circulating daycare.

The pillow we used for the color palette inspiration

Dr. Plummer’s taste for art and color matched up with my style so the sketching process was swift. Her vision was to have only text on the walls of the words “breathe, smile, and love”. She also wanted the text to be illustrated in a way that represents the action.

The preferred color palette was actually the colors already on my paint rotation. She wanted the colors on a throw pillow in the office waiting room, along with a primary color pallet.

Sketch/Design

Black and white sketches

Color sketches with grid. Ready for the wall.

I used a grid to transfer the art onto the walls, along with a homemade paper stencil. It wasn’t feasible to use a projector in the hallway because there wasn’t enough distance for placement. To create the paper stencil, I used a projector at home to roughly trace the image onto kraft paper. I cut out parts of the stencil I needed to mark the placement of the text.

I could’ve sketched the design on the wall using only the grid and without the stencil. But my time is limited when I’m working on site, away from home. For this project, I felt better about being over prepared for transferring the design on the wall, rather than under prepared.

I placed the paper stencil on the mural wall and used white paint to fill in the stencil.

The white markings give me reference points for painting the text and florals, along with a grid I chalked on the wall.

I sketch in the the design using white paint and/or chalk. I use chalk because it wipes away with water without touch up needed. I use white paint because it’s easy to paint over.

Blank Walls

Hallway with blanks walls for the mural at Maxwello Dental. Pearland, TX.

Finished Mural Walls

Breathe by Caroline Truong. Mural for Maxwello Dental Office.

Smile by Caroline Truong. Mural for Maxwello Dental Office.

Love by Caroline Truong. Mural for Maxwello Dental Office.

The experience of designing and painting custom murals for Maxwello Dental was enjoyable. I was able to bring Dr. Plummer’s vision to life by adding a touch of her personality to the dental practice - and in my own style! Stay tuned for more. Dr. Plummer also commissioned me to paint a 4ft x 8ft large canvas for her home, and I can’t wait to get started!

What do you think of having murals like these in a dental office?

Leave a comment or send me a note. I’d like to hear your thoughts or any ideas for future projects!

Welcome to La Bonita Gardens - Mini Mural

Caroline Truong September 16, 2022

Up Art Studio put out a call to their artists to design a mini mural at Bennington Dr & Hirsch Rd. To my surprise, my design got picked, woohoo! The design I submitted had a horse, instead of the bakery and family you see now. We did some revisions and came up with this final sketch for the mini mural.

Even though there were several requests regarding the artwork design, I was completely open to implementing their suggestions because I’m not familiar with the neighborhood, other than driving through it, and wanted to make sure the artwork represents the community and they’ll be happy to see it on their streets everyday.

I felt very proud to be selected because of what The La Bonita Civic Club said:

“…this mural is a very exciting project for our community. For so long our existence has been denied and, just recently, we have been validated. So, this mural is very important to us. In fact, I hope this is the beginning of many more paintings to come.

“…please add "La" to Bonita Gardens…Technically, the "La" should be in there because it encompasses the entire community and not just the Bonita Gardens Subdivision. The two other subdivisions in "La Bonita" (Precinct 574) are Bennington Pace and Cranford Place. Bonita Gardens was the first to be established and the new occupants were predominantly Spanish-speaking, hence, La Bonita was derived from Bonita Gardens. And, it stuck.”

Originally, the design did not have “La” in front of Bonita Gardens and I would’ve never known to include had I not been open to their comments.

Zepeda’s Bakery

This is an old google maps image of Zepeda’s Bakery that formerly existed on Hirsch street.

The community members sent the image and had the idea of including the bakery in the artwork, stating the following: “I found this image of the abandoned bakery from 2007 Google Maps. Is it possible to draw it into the background of the family, of course, with some life to it? I think that would make sooo many of us very happy. Imagine the warm, sweet aroma of memories it will trigger.”

Someone familiar with the bakery saw the mini mural and posted on Instagram. Turns out, she is a niece of the former owner and her name is Loida. I reached out to her because I was curious to know more about the the building since it no longer exists but seems to be a sweet memory for the locals.

Loida told me her uncle Ismael Zepeda owned Zepeda’s Bakery and passed away there in a robbery in January 1981. He left behind 4 young children at the time. There’s a Houston Chronicle article about the incident, but unfortunately I haven’t been able to locate it. Ismael owned several properties in the neighborhood. Sometimes, when tenants couldn’t pay rent, he would give them extra time and groceries on credit. Zepeda’s was one of the first Mexican bakeries in Houston. Ismael made barbacoa to sell on Sunday mornings. This was before Hispanic meat markets existed in the area.

Loida says she has a memory of her uncle in the back of the bakery making marranitos, which are gingerbread in the shape of a little pig. He would glaze the dough with egg with a little brush. He was wearing a white apron. The memory of watching her uncle work always sticks in Loida’s mind. She was 11 when he passed away.

Hearing this story made my heart melt. I wish I knew these details before painting the mural so I could implement the story of Ismael into the design. However, Loida and the La Bonita Civic Club are happy with how it turned out. And so am I ! It definitely brightens up the street corner and makes the view from Busby Park a bit more pleasant.

The box when it was primed and ready for painting.

I did the text side first. I used a grid to ensure the letters were placed in the right spot.

I created a stencil to transfer the portrait sketches to the box.

Below is photo of Mr. Luis Cruz and I - he is the owner of Mr. Cruz Tire Shop where the traffic signal box is located. His presence while I was painting was helpful for keeping my spirits up throughout the heat! Painting is a lonely job so having company is always a treat.

I was skeptical about taking on the project at first because I was worried about two things - 1) safety because the neighborhood appears pretty rough, and 2) being an outsider to the community coming in to paint a mural… as if I don’t belong?

However, once I was out there painting, everything turned out fine. Anyone who approached me had only positive things to say. People who stopped at the intersection would roll down their windows and shout praises. I felt welcome and never uncomfortable. I think it also helped that Mr. Cruz had my back!

The only rough part about doing this mural was working in the hot Texas sun. The heat kicked my butt! I limited myself to 2-3 hours sessions and spread the work over a few months. I took my time on this one because of how hot it was.