Traditionally, murals have been painted on large preexisting surfaces. Yet, when I was hired to paint four historical murals, two measuring six by sixteen feet, and two at six by twenty four feet, the building they were intended for was a hole in the ground still under construction.

I had to have the work done to coincide with the grand opening of the building which meant completing the work and figuring out how to store the pieces.

Luckily, my family is in the construction business and drawing on this back ground, I devised a way to build murals of any size that can be broken down and moved.

The method involves the creation of an elaborate structural frame that is rigid but light weight and only two and a quarter inches thick. This acts as the support for the canvas which is stretched over the frame making in effect a giant easel canvas.

I use the Venetian Technique to complete the work and when the paint dries, I remove the canvas from the frame and simply roll it up. Then I break down the frame.

Because the individual parts are all small enough to fit into an elevator, the mural can be shipped virtually anywhere and reassembled on the site for which it is intended.

                                             Anthony Benton Gude February 2004