Art law concerning mural painting?

[Patt Legg]

I have yet another question about the law and art. A friend of mine wishes to do mural painting in very elaborate and well-to-do homes. In requesting this, the company who constructed these elaborate homes near a 5 Star Resort told her she needed Contractors License and others to do this legally.

I never heard of such a thing myself. She claims that she took a test and passed (although she studied for 2 months and said it was tough)I am just real curious about this. Has anyone here heard of that? She claims that Virginia and Florida does not require such license other than maybe a business license.

If you know of a site to study such things, please let me know.

Thanks to all,

Patt

[Dianne Gardner]

Hi Patt,
I do know with other kinds of construction that goes on with a house there is such a thing as owner-contractor which puts the responsiblity with the home owner. I would imagine in most cases this would apply to mural painting.

Just a thought.
Dianne

[Richard Bingham]

Why speculate? Learn what laws apply in the localities where you work. If you are contracting to paint on the walls of a client's home, you are by definition a "contractor". Murals are rare, and "code" that applies will likely be non-existent, but you can still be bound by the same laws and licensing restrictions that apply to commercial painters and sign makers.

An aside, depending on the nature of the project and its cost, an artist doing mural works should be very wary of "sheet rock" (aka gypsum board) walls . . . just a thought!

[Chris Saper]

One additioinal thought- be sure to include in the contract a clause as to what happens if the client is not satisfied. If the the muralist is required to return the wall to its "previous condition", that might become a $ nightmare.

[Mary Reilly]

I heard of someone who painted murals by painting on canvas, and then the canvas was applied to the wall with wall paper paste. The end result looked like a mural, but the work was done in a studio. Doing a mural this was can make it possible for the customer to approve the painting before it goes into the home. That could save on potential problems that might occur when painting directly onto the wall - especially if the customer is unhappy with the results.

[Richard Bingham]

The technique is called "maroflage", and one of the someones was John Sargent, whose murals adorn the Boston Museum of Fine Art and Public Library.

As Mary notes, there are a number of advantages to approaching a mural project this way . . . however, adhering the painting to the wall presents a number of challenges. Be sure you know the wall, your painting substrate and the adhesives you intend to use very well, through extensive proven testing before mounting such a project.