13 Tips on Good Photography for Decorative Painters

People say to me all the time "wow Lynne, your work looks amazing!"
Well amazing it may well be, but here is my beauty secret: much of the reason it looks so good is the quality of the photograph.

When you've just finished a great project, often all you have as a record of your fine work is the photograph. So it follows, the better that photograph, the better your work will look, and unless you are yourself a very skilled photographer, you really must consider getting professional help.

Learn what makes a Photograph work for you:

• When your work is part of an interior design scheme, showing a picture of the whole interior, rather than just a shot of one wall, is very important, to show how your painting works with the room. It helps sell the work to the next client who wants to visualize what you do as part of the design process, to show the scale of what you painted; how you got the color to match surrounding materials, etc. This is very difficult to accomplish, even with a good digital camera.
  
• Take some responsibility for what's in the shot. Ladders, tarps, construction paper, unfinished rooms with missing hardware or wires hanging down for lighting that has not yet been installed... is that a finished room or a construction site? is that blue tape part of the look? Do you want to give future clients the impression that you leave tape behind? non! Such pictures do not belong in your portfolio! Make it part of your contract, that you be allowed to return to the site to document your work in a finished setting.

Why you should hire a professional photographer

• If you need to shoot something large, or a whole room, a large format camera with a lens that won't distort the room, and proper lighting, make all the difference.
• You are far more likely to get your work published if you can provide a good high-resolution image to the editors.
  

To get the Lacemaker shot in this house in Corte Madera, CA, back in 1993, David Papas and his assistant had to haul their equipment up four flights of steep exterior fog-dampened stairway, rearrange furniture, spend two hours lighting the room to reduce glare and eliminate shadows on the mural, style the 10 foot wide Michael Taylor table using the homeowners own dishes, and the result is I got a 4"x5" positive transparency of a gorgeous room, which has really come in handy for the six times this mural has been published in magazines and books.

Establish a relationship with a good, professional photographer.

• Work with the same photographer over a period of time, and consider that person part of your team.
  

Over the last 20 years most of my better work has been shot by my friend David Papas, who has not only made my work look great, but he's taught me a lot about photography in general.

David is also expert at digital photography, taking large images, correcting problems on the computer, and turning that image over for publication as quickly as possible.

photo by David Papas ©Lynne Rutter 2007

This image of my Vintage Laundry room for the 2007 San Francisco Showcase House was taken by David Papas in two shots, seamed together on the computer. He also "airbrushed" out undesirable clutter like the extension cords and extra lighting that were visible in the shot, and then de-saturated the image to give it the look of an old, tinted photograph.

Factor In the Cost of Photography

Photographers cost money to hire, and with good reason: some of those large format cameras cost as much a luxury automobile, and it takes years to learn how to deal with the various problems of capturing the desired image, and to know how to make the most of what's there.
So, for a large project, I factor in the cost of the photo shoot in advance of making my bid whenever possible.

However, I know well, that the going rate for decent photography may be well more than the profit on some of those smaller projects, and sometimes you just can't get back to that site. So, here are some alternative solutions...

Some low-cost ways to get some great shots into your portfolio:

• Often your project is going to be photographed anyway, so team up with the others involved! The contractor, interior designer, architect, drapery workroom, or carpet showroom, may already have plans to take photos of the finished job. Talk to them about sharing the cost of a photo shoot.
• When working with an interior designer, for a client, or showcase house, ask about the photography of the finished job before you quote a price or do any work. Ask for a detail shot of your work that you can use in your portfolio. Often the cost of one extra shot will be nominal and/or can be considered part of your fee.
  
• If your client plans to photograph the space when it's finished, ask to participate in that photo shoot. If you can't be there, talk to the photographer yourself to tell them what you need to emphasize.
  

My client, the David Allen Company in Raleigh, NC, had a photo shoot done of their headquarters and showroom, and the photographer , Jim Sink took an extra shot of the Nine Muses ceiling mural I painted there, and sent me a CD of this photograph:

which was extremely fortunate given the horrid "available light" shot I had taken myself - I simply did not know how to deal with a mix of halogen, fluorescent, incandescent, and natural light coming from the door.

• Offer to trade services with a photographer. Your decorating skills might be just what [s]he need to make a backdrop, finish a room, enhance the studio, etc.
  
• If your project might get published, ask the photographer from the newspaper or magazine, if you may use one or two of the shots [s]he took in exchange for a link on your website or some usage fee. Sometimes a photographer freelancing for a magazine or newspaper will even contact you.
  

This picture of an historic home in Diablo, CA, for which I painted the floor and faux bois woodwork, was taken by Bernardo Grijalva while shooting for an article in the East Bay Home and Design, which included some of my work, and he was kind enough to email me a larger format copy of the image to use on my website.



Credit where credit is due

• Remember, whether you paid for the photo shoot or not, always give the photographer credit when you use one of their photographs. While you own the copyright on your work, the photographer owns the copyright on the photographic image, and you must have permission to use it.

• Just like you, photographers like to have their good work seen and get their name out there to attract more business. Work with them, and they will help make you look good, too.

Lynne Rutter Murals and Decorative Painting

Gilt trompe l'oeil: Versailles

Ceiling ornament detail, Châteu de Versailles: neoclassical style trompe l'œil ornament with gilt highlights; gilt panels with trompe l'oeil shadows. This gorgeous bit of painting dates from the Second Empire.

(click on image to enlarge) look closely, you can even see the brushstrokes.

photo by Lynne Rutter, 2007

Lynne Rutter Murals and Decorative Painting

New York: Winter Windows

christmas on mars: extravagant macy's window

mixing business and pleasure, last week i made a short trip to new york, to work on a gilt ceiling with my friend bruce thalman.
my first night there i had a veritable holly golightly moment when bruce and john took me to herald square, to macy's at a somewhat late hour so we could get that midnight shopping experience. the windows currently have a splendid santa-in-space theme.

the following day, while waiting for some surface to cure, bruce and i spent an incredible afternoon at one of my favorite places - abc carpet and home.


their windows, as most of the inside of the store, are of an indian/world beat theme. thousands of crystals, and i mean the vingettes are packed with them, act as a snowy landscape.


i didn't have my camera on me for the fantastic tony duquette-inspired bergdorf windows, but fortunately racked.com posted some shots.

want to see more lovely window displays? check out the amazing vitrines of paris and london as reported at tara bradford's paris parfait.

Cluster Bomb Batik

Daniel Gundlach designed this piece by incorporating the images of bombers and cluster bombs into a patten from an antique batik sarung.

A recent addition to my textile collection is this modern batik sarung designed by my friend Daniel Gundlach. At first glance it's a traditional pattern with marsh reeds and birds, in an unusual color of battleship gray with green and bits of orange.
And then you notice... the bombers... and the cluster bombs.

detail of Cluster bomb Batik, by the Language of Cloth

Unexploded devices still litter the landscapes of Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam. They have a high rate of failure to detonate on impact, and subsequently lie like tiny landmines, continuing to mame and kill children and other civilians dozens of years after the bombs were dropped.

Daniel got a nice mention in the San Francisco Chronicle this week. You can see more of his work and benefit from his excellent eye for batik and other Asian textiles at the Language of Cloth Trunk Show and Sale weekends now through December 24.

Krampus!

Travel flashback: December 5, 2002, Salzburg, Austria

December 6 is St. Nicholas Day. yes, that St. Nik aka the Bishop of Myra, aka Santa Claus. The night before, is known as Krampusnacht.

Krampus making new friend outside a bar in Salzburg

In the Salzburgerland, St. Nik (dressed as a bishop) is always preceded by a pack of horrifying devils. Krampus wears a shaggy suit of fur, carved mask with horns, and large iron bells,  and an apple basket or bag on his back. His job: beat the bad children with bundles of sticks, stuff them in baskets or bags, or otherwise punish them, while St Nik doles out treats to the good kids. The sounds of the bells sends the children running (either to or from.)

We found a bunch of these guys bar-hopping along the river: after they'd done with their more official duties in the Mozartplatz, they were using their super cool costumes to charm women.

A lovely Weiner Werkstätte style greeting card, circa 1900

The Krampus tradition is also popular in other parts of Europe in various forms, and a common subject in Victorian greeting cards.

How my family managed all these decades without an annual visit from the Krampusse is beyond me.

Chinoiserie in Red

The Chinoiserie Powder Room I designed for the San Francisco Decorator Showcase House - David Papas Photography

Here's one of my favorite historic decorating trends: Chinoiserie.

For a number of years now I've been known for painting a certain style of flowering trees Chinoiserie mural using my own spin on the look that was all the rage in late 17th and 18th century French décor.
I adore the wallcoverings of deGournay and Gracie, which are still being produced today in much the same way as the hand-painted wallpapers found in the Royal Pavillion at Brighton, or Lustschloss Hellbrunn, Salzburg. These papers are lush, labor intensive, delicate, and worth every dime they cost.

For this room mural, rather than paint densely covered wallpaper-style panels, I used a light hand, and a more naturalistic approach, to keep this intimate-scaled space airy and uncluttered. Carnelian Red walls help make the room look larger as well as rich and fabulous. And we included California natives such as poppies and monarch butterflies, alongside the lilies, pomegranates, and peonies.

some mentions for this room:
Kafka blog
sfgate

Lynne Rutter Murals + Decorative Painting

The Language of Cloth

I'm so excited about his time of year, because this is when my friend Daniel Gundlach has his annual Asian Textiles sale!

the flowers, birds, sea-life, and the unusual color of this Cirebon sarung, reminds me of the work of Ernst Haeckel.

Daniel is a talented painter with whom I worked back in my salad days, and he now spends 6 months or more every year traveling in Indonesia and Southeast Asia, using his great eye for color and form to collect and design textiles. His company, The Language of Cloth, assists communities in reviving the teaching and making of their local traditional arts while giving them a contemporary spin.

This year's show concentrates on the batik work of Central Java. All of these pieces are one-of-a-kind, hand-made, and spectacular. Many museum-quality contemporary works, as well as antique and tribal pieces are available, and there is a good assortment of scarves and smaller items that make wondrous and affordable gifts as well.

Yes it sounds hippie-dippie, and maybe it is, but you can do some very cool decorating and fashion-ating with this stuff.

My own batik collection is growing! clockwise from top: the red batik cotton tuli "mega mendung" (rain cloud) pattern is destined to become a new window shade; that splendid multicolored scarf I've been wearing all year is a Batak tribal pattern; cotton Cirebon-style sarung super cool in purple; a kain panjang cloth in hand-loomed Garut silk and nautral dyes will become an amazing skirt for me soon; contemporary batik scarf on hand-woven Lao silk; green and grey silk batik sarung I use as a shawl.

Update! read about Dan's work in the San Francisco Chronicle.

The Language of Cloth Trunk Show and Sale
Weekends now through December
November 23-25/30th
December 1-2 / 7-9 / 14-16 / 21-24

11 am - 6 pm
650-A Guerrero Street, San Francisco

415.613.9693 www.languageofcloth.com

Fall Color

Better late than never
my tree dahlia has finally bloomed! Along with the brugmansia, abutelon, and some of the masdevallias. This is what fall looks like in my garden----


yellow flowering brugmansia - night fragrant


dahlia imperialis

tea towels

kitchen linens by tikoli

tea towels. somewhere along the line i started collecting them.
not the terry-cloth hand-wipers you see everywhere, but nice, smooth lint-free souvenirs with kiwis or scenes from nürnberg on them.
maybe I get the tendency from my grandmother, jane coley, whose fabulous collection of linens i had displayed in my vintage laundry earlier this year during the san francisco decorator showcase house.

maja brugos is my second cousin; the grand-daughter of jane's sister lenore; and it seems she has the linen bug in her as well. she's a talented graphic designer who has created a line of lovely kitchen towels available at her site tikoli.com as well as a number of swell shops across the country.

i'm pretty sure all of these will look great in my wasabi-green kitchen!

setting the table

I love the work of my friend, artist Marcia Stuermer, who designs acrylic resin furniture and art installations   ia her company Stuermer Studios. Embedded in the resin can be anything from grasses and rice, to computer parts, cds, street trash, rocks, and skeletal leaves, frozen in what can be considered modern fossils.
The surface of these things is lovely- honed, durable, hard but not cold.

I've asked Marcia to make a table for me, an unusual size, round, sort of a dining room library all purpose life table. I am putting a lot of pressure on this table to be everything for me already. For a long time I was not sure what it ought to preserve- my shell collection, single earrings, or any of those other odd bits of old and pretty that I not so secretly collect, but rarely display in a somewhat vain effort to unclutter my life. None of my ideas seem to quite work with the arty-farty eclectic Victoriana gallimaufry that is my décor.

The ideal solution presented itself to us when Marcia and I went to see a show in the gallery of the Intersection for the Arts, where a profound installation by Stephani Martinez reminded me that I have a trunk full of hand made lace doilies made by my great-grandmother.

Today I picked up the fantastic sample Marcia made.

I am very excited to see the results of this. Rather than setting the table with a lace tablecloth... it will be an Embedded Translucent Lace Table.

Backstage at Versailles

left to right: moi, Laurent Hissier, Dr. Erling H. Wold II, Emily Swift-Jones, Daniel Sievert, Pierre LeFumat, and the hunk on the end is a carpenter named Alexandre

During our recent trip to Paris, evil twin Emily Swift-Jones,  Erling and I made a trip to the Palace of Versailles, to visit our friend Laurent Hissier, a talented artisan who works there painting and gilding.
Laurent met us at the side gate, waved us in, and then produced an impressive key from his pocket that opened ALL the doors. We got to see all those room upstairs where the public is not generally allowed.    And then -((squeal!!)) - he took us to the pop-up atelier where they were working, situated in a few giant unused rooms in one wing of the palace.
The crew has been restoring a lot of furniture, and building and painting supports with eye-popping faux marbre to display the pieces, for a huge show of silver gilt furniture.   Just the supports were so beautifully painted as to be works of art themselves!
To make it even more exciting, Pierre LeFumat, the master himself, was working in this atelier, creating an amazing faux campan finish when we arrived.
We also met the charming master gilder, Daniel Sievert, who  has been working at the palace since he was 14 years old.   As you can imagine, a gilder will never run out of work to do at Versailles.

This was hands-down the highlight of my trip.

Merci Laurent for the hospitality, and to all the crew who stopped to visit with us.

"When Versailles was Furnished in Silver" runs 19 November 2007 to 9 March 2008

Lynne Rutter Murals + Decorative Painting

The Ornamentalist

Unteres Belvedere: Goldenes Zimmer.  Designed circa 1720 by architect Johann Lucas von Hildebrandt for Prince Eugene of Savoy (1663-1736)  decorative artist: unknown

One of the reasons I travel is to be inspired by the work of others, and be reminded of what I can do, what I want to do, rather than just what I have to do; it renews my interest in my chosen career.
I am also making a photographic "ornament bank" for reference, both for myself and for the decorative painting world in general- it will wind up either as an on-line digital source or possibly a book.

At any rate, I need to see places like this once in a while and ask- why does no one ask me to make a room like this? because I can do it, just so you know. And what's more, I want to, and I know why it matters.


Vienna, 2007

Lynne Rutter Murals + Decorative Painting

jennybird's open studio

this lovely october morning.... erling and i went to the open studio of jennybird alcantara.
we have both long admired her work and erling has been keen to buy a larger painting. we now are excited to be making room for the nearly eight foot high panel "seperated at birth" one of the 2005 burning man funhouse series.

jennybird also has a lot of smaller work as well as prints available, and she's well known for her wonderous dolls, many of which relate back to her paintings and which appeal to the crafty as well as the creepy side of me. i could not help it. violet came home with me.

support your local artists!
san francisco open studios runs through the end of october all over the city. you can visit jennybird and other sunset district artists, october 13 and 14, 2007.

rare product endorsement: La GuerillaPod

I've just returned from three weeks in Europe, where I took an obscene number of pictures in dark places with my Nikon D70 . Lugging a tripod around while traveling is a pretty unattractive prospect, especially when the lightweight alternatives cost $500 and up. And you still need the ball head, and then the whole thing really isn't all that lightweight anymore.
Thankfully, before I left, a sales rep at Calumet Photo introduced me to the Gorillapod by Joby. I got the heavy duty model which screws right into the camera base, and can hold over 6 pounds of weight clamped onto the marble railing of the Kunsthistorisches Museum, or the back of a pew chair in the Église Saint Germain des Prés, so I could hold up my 200 mm lens with no problem and no ball head.

La GuerillaPod in Trikonasana


In some places I visited photography is, shall we say, discouraged, so I appreciated being able to set up a shot without attracting a lot of attention to myself, and then renamed my new tool La GuerillaPod.

The only downside to this gadget is that it can "bounce" a little, so a remote control is a nice addition. (on my older camera, I had a cable release, but Nikon did not make one for the D70)

Other mini tripods, such as those offered by Giottos, are also quite useful, especially the super slick E.Pod , but these cannot take the weight of a telephoto lens.


I will be posting the results of my expedition soon.

Cameras in Dark Churches

ceiling mural by Delacroix, Église Saint-Sulpice, Paris
photo using a Nikon p5000 set on the floor

During a recent visit to Saint-Sulpice, I watched dozens of tourists whip out their cameras and snap away, auto flashes going off like mortar fire over a dark trench.

Their pictures will likely look pretty bad: the flash cannot illuminate a ceiling 65 feet away, or it may leave a bright spot of glare in the middle of a mural. While it was believed at one time that thousands of flashes going off in a given day can damage an artwork, the reality is, it's distracting to others and just plain rude. Charging through a church flashing away is highly disrespectful to the space and to those who are there to worship.

At one point a girl asked me if I knew where the rose line is, to which I replied "it's not actually in this church", because it isn't. However, she and a gaggle of others found the famous gnomon without my help.
To these people I wish to say, please, put away your cameras and appreciate the place you are visiting for whatever reason. Buy a postcard, or look on the internet- someone else has more than likely done a much better job taking that picture before you.

For those of you who can show some respect and really care about that photo, here are some Dark Church photography tips:

• do not take pictures during a church service- come back later when you won't be bothering anyone.
• turn off the flash
• if possible set the ISO to 640 or below - anti-vibration settings and high shutter speeds will make for a grainy picture.
• set the camera timer (I use 3 seconds)
• check again that the flash is OFF - sometimes changing any setting on the camera will put the flash back into auto mode.
• place camera on the floor, pew, or other sturdy support (but not on an altar or anything important) and press the button, do not touch camera or move it until after the picture is taken.

Exciting surpise in Paris

If you are addicted to fine tea, as I am, you might begin to understand the thrill of stumbling upon the rather hip-looking Kusmi boutique at 75 Rue de Seine in Paris, and the massive colorful jars of the precious stuff in the back room.

Albrechts Flügel

This week we are in Vienna!

Yesterday Erling Wold and I went to Albertina, notable for its print collection and works on paper, including those by Albrecht Dürer.

Years ago Erling wrote some music for a Jon Jost film called Albrechts Flügel. Though the film was never finished, the piano piece, played here by Marja Mutru, is among my favorite of Erling's compositions.
mp3 at erlingwold.com 






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Singerie Screen in 7x7

September issue of 7x7 Magazine has included a shot of my singerie screen in their home and design section.

A Delicate Matter - Care for your bare necessities with these pretty picks for your laundry room. by Leilani Labong


This large screen made its debut my "Vintage Laundry" in the 2007 San Francisco Decorator Showcase.
Each panel is 90" high by 26" wide and 1.75" thick - sturdy enough to serve as a room divider, or to create a dressing area from a larger room.



One side of the screen is painted in a blue/gray neoclassical motif with singerie scenes in which the monkeys are all playing with clothing, sewing, etc.

Contact Lynne Rutter for details about purchasing this screen or commissioning a custom piece.

My thanks to David Papas Photographer for these photos.

Marin landscape mural finished

landscape mural painted by Lynne Rutter

Here is the finished mural for Janet Moyer's showroom.

Drop by and see it at 1031 Valencia Street, San Francisco. It looks pretty cool at night as well---

Marin landscape mural painted by Lynne Rutter

Lynne Rutter Murals + Decorative Painting

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Marin Landscape mural in progress

gouache maquette of mural: a valley view in Marin, with Mt. Tamalpais in the background...

Here's a work in progress at the Valencia St. showroom of Janet Moyer Landscaping.
It been a challenging project to deal with the space, the changing light from the various tinted windows, and the rough stucco texture on the wall, the heat of the afternoon sun--
but I got to work in a pleasant space surrounded by plants, with a burbling water feature full of friendly goldfish, wafts of coffee aroma drifting in all day, courtesy of the Ritual Coffee Roasters  just across the street.

Before: the space was painted a blue/gray with some clouds up high:

mural wall, before

I recommended the room be painted with a brighter, sky blue, (Benjamin Moore #1642 "Cape Blue") and to paint the overhang to make it less obtrusive. In my maquette, I scaled the painting to add depth to the space and keep the majority of the painting closer to eye level, and let the rest of the room be the "sky". The mural will serve as a backdrop for the landscape design. Just the color change made a huge difference.

color change, step one

After drawing out the composition using sidewalk chalk I started painting. The surface is really rough, so taking a tip from my friend Jennifer Ewing, I wet the wall using a squirt bottle first. I also used a good deal of acrylic retarder in my paints, so I could blend some areas. In general I am using the texture to my advantage, to do a lot of dry-brushing using large scenic fitches, and keep a soft, atmospheric look.

work in progress...

This mural will be completed tomorrow...

Lynne Rutter Murals + Decorative Painting

Bayview Victorian gets her just reward

Today the SF Chronicle ran a wonderful piece on the home of my friends Adrian Card and John Tinker. They've spent years rehabbing one of the oldest houses in San Francisco, with respect for its architecture, and its previous owners.

Adrian is also a member of Artistic License, and I've enjoyed collaborating with him in the last year.

SALI conventioneers invade local studios

A group of SALI members in Lynne Rutter's Studio, July 2007

Last week the Stencil Artisan's League held its annual convention in the San Francisco Airport Hyatt. I'd never attended such a convention before, and as it was local to me, I signed up for some classes being taught by Lucretia Moroni and Tania Seabock, and dragged my arse to Burlingame at 8 am every morning. I had a lot of fun, met a number of nice painters from all over the world, and got no sleep for 6 days straight.

Lisa Làzàr and I planned a progressive studio tour for some of the visitors for Friday night. Around 7 PM a boisterous group of artists showed up at my hastily cleaned up Dogpatch studio, where Vera greeted them with Salvadoran food and tequila.
Among the artists in attendance: Sheri Hoeger, Ryan Hoeger, Jeff Raum, Pat Ganino, Mike and Matt from Creative Evolution, Tom McPherson, Ian and Tania Seabock, Lisa Wolfin, Cleta Grant, Kathy vanGogh, Arlene Mcloughlin, Mimi, Margo, Sass Lassley, Bruce Thalman, Pamela Hernandez, Anne Halaby, Elena Ortega, Heather, Stacy Carney, Pat Strong, Kristen Lerner, Kristin McNeill...

We then carpooled over to West Oakland where Lisa runs the scenic studio for the Berkeley Repertory Theater : her amazing shop is housed in a 25 gazillion square foot zeppelin hangar, clean, well organized, stocked with every tool you could imagine.

Afterwards part of the group wound up at the DNA lounge for some after hours dancing. whew!

Lynne Rutter Murals + Decorative Painting

Miss July

I'm featured as July's "Artist of the Month" over at LearntoFaux.com, a website providing educational resources and social networking for the decorative painting obsessed.

Check out the bio they posted for me, as well as their other features, such the ArtSpace: a myspace-styled profile for decorative artists, attached to the popular and informative Faux Forum.

Vera- Blogdom's popular party girl

Vera Has a Martini | acrylic and oil on canvas (detail)

Of course you notice her, the luscious dark-haired girl in the jazz club, cooling her brow with a martini glass and giving the guy right behind you a cold come-hither stare.

Yes, I mean you, bloggers, taking Vera's picture, and using your story to tell her story. Go ahead and project onto her all your bitterness, desires and dreams.

"Vera has a Martini" was commissioned as part of a group of paintings for the (gone but not forgotten) Cobalt Tavern in San Francisco's North Beach. Since then, she's been inspiring musings all over the internet with her icy mixed message, and, she has become something of an alter-ego for me as well, since I use her as my avatar in some places.
I've found her in many blogs and websites over the years. Vera sure gets around.
here are some of the more interesting entries:

"Stirred, Not Shaken" Mantis in a Teacup, February 2007
The Perfect Friday Night Pegasus News, January 2007
"Martini + Rossi" Yonja - Kuşadası , Turkey
Cleopa is Here! Cleopa - Pensieri Disordinati, Christmas, 2005
John Gilbert's Home Page

Diego's big close-up

"Diego" giant blue and gold Macaw parrot, painted by Lynne Rutter for the New Spot, San Francisco. 10 x 13' acrylic on canvas.

While visiting the Urban Farmer this afternoon, I noticed a giant parrot on the cover of the 96 Hours weekend insert of the San Francisco Chronicle.

A nice review of the New Spot, for whom I painted this mural, is featured, along with some other good pictures.

How to attract paparazzi...

1. show up late
2. wear a turban
(also handy to cover that sweaty "i just worked all day" hair)
3. pick up flute of champagne on the way in, completely ignoring the bank of photographers that are by now following you
4. hook arms with the tallest, best looking guy you can find: in this case, Rob Delameter of Lost Art Salon

Here is my exceedingly rare appearance on the society page
"signature look" translation = "we don't get it"




circa 1920 Chinese robe from Torso Vintages
turban by Kathleen Crowley

Photo by Drew Altizer\

Lynne Rutter Murals + Decorative Painting