I was asked to create a mural for Walmart store in Baytown, TX, a suburb of Houston.
The mural celebrates Baytown’s vibrant spirit, featuring the joyful rhythms of the Baytown music Festivals with lively musicians and dancing people. The scene is set against the Fred Hartman Bridge, with sweeping views of the bay and native wildlife, capturing both the cultural energy and natural beauty of the city.
With the artwork tittle, Festival by the Bay, my goal was to create an artwork that celebrates Baytown’s vibrant heart through music, motion, and landscape.
Mural size: 18.3 x13 ft. Vinyl installation, created in Adobe Photoshop.
Client: Walmart | Location: Baytown, TX | Agency: Now Art, LA
The project was part of the Walmart Community Mural Program, a celebration of communities across America. Inspired by the community and together with every store manager, each mural reflects the local diversity and cultural references.
BRIEF:
The brief called for representation of Zydeco and Hispanic music festivals with a minor mention of the Hartman bridge.
PROCESS:
Starting with a sketch, the illustration process took several rounds of revisions following the clients progressing feedback. Major ask was to create a detailed bridge and making sure the characters in the art represent diverse ethnicities.
Before starting a project, I do a thorough research of the city I'm rendering.
That is essential part of my process as it gives me a wider view of a project and supplements the brief with visual cues. In this case I chose to add the umbrellas as a fun motif, following an on-site art installation featuring umbrellas located in downtown.
To accurately draw the musicians, I was looking at photos of Zydeco that showcased musical instruments unique to that genre of music.
The final round of revision followed the ask to remove characters from the scene and introduce another wildlife creature, a large lizard. I was also asked to remove the umbrellas from the sky and add clouds.
Bellow is the final artwork for this project:
Thank you for watching!
