Ginny's COSI Mural

Installation: Friday March 26, 2010

2010-03-29T13:32:00.000-07:00

Here is my finished mural Living Earth installed on the wall at COSI! It was exciting to actually see it on the wall at COSI! We had an official installation on Friday March 26, 2010.

This is the plaque that hangs next to my mural. It reads as follows:

Ginny Baughman, Teaching Artist, age 51, Westerville, Ohio, Acrylic Golden Paint over primed Canvas, www.ginnybaughman.com

I decided to participate in the mural project because I wanted to experience working on a large mural. COSI gave me a storeroom to setup my studio in. I worked there for about two months and I enjoyed every minute of it! Check out my Blog that I kept during this time at http://ginnyscosimrual.blogspot.com/

I wanted to make a statement with my mural, about the struggle of our planet to retain its quickly changing environment and our struggle, as inhabitants on this earth, to preserve or plunder the environment. Are the hands pulling the earth apart or putting it back together? I am leaving the final conclusions up to the viewer.

The week after I finished the mural I was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. This mural will always remind me of my struggle with this disease. Just as the figure in the painting emerges from the earth, I too have emerged form my diagnosis determined to move on with my new life as a diabetic.

Here I am by my mural.

Me and my mural.

My own kids could not attend the installation, so I invited my extended family. Here we are by the mural (left to right: Tammy Baughman, Isiah Williams, Tessa Baughman, Me, Doug Baughman (my husband) and Becky Baughman). I had a great time enjoying COSI, after the installation, with my niece and nephews.

Here is where my mural actually ended up: right next to the entrance to the Ocean exhibit. This seemed to be to be a very appropriate place for it! Funny thing: I thought of the background as sky, but I suppose that it could be the ocean as well!

Here are the three murals on the first floor, where my mural is, looking down the hallway.

Here is a closer picture looking down the hallway.

Here are the three murals looking up the hallway from my mural.

Before we left COSI that evening I just had to go back to look at my mural one more time. It is so thrilling to have my artwork so prominently displayed!
According to COSI 500,000 people will pass by the murals in one year's time! That is so exciting! I think some day I want just come and sit on the bench across from my mural and watch the reactions of people as they walk by. Wouldn't that be fun?!
I really hope to have to opportunity to do something like this mural again........

If you are visiting my Blog for the first time, please enjoy the following posts that chronicle my work in the Living Earth mural. It was such an exciting experience and this is why I wanted to keep record of the process to share with everyone.

Tuesday Feb. 2, 2010 Mural Comes Down

2010-02-04T10:48:00.000-08:00

My finished Mural!

Here I am with my mural.

This is Doug Buchanan and me. I have been working with him throughout the project.

My Mural coming down.

My Mural stretched out on the floor and then being rolled up to be stored until it will be hung on the wall in the hallways of COSI. Hopefully in the next couple of weeks!

This has been an exciting experience. Although relieved to have the mural finished I haven't wanted to see it end. Everyone has been so great to work with at COSI. I am anxious to see the mural actually on the wall at COSI. Hope I get the chance to do another mural sometime soon!

Last Day of Mural Mural Work Tuesday Jan. 20, 2010

2010-01-20T07:44:00.000-08:00

This is my finished mural after I finished working on it until about 2:00 Tues. Jan. 20. I think that I could have kept working on it forever. But I needed to call it finished at some point, so this is it. What do you think?

On this day I went over some of my work and added the red flowers into the vines, because it seemed like it needed some different colors besides just green and blue.

It is finished! All is left to do is take the mural off the wall and roll it up for storage. I will come back next week to do this so that I am certain that it is completely dry.
I would love to have some reactions from viewers. Please let me know what you think. Is it truly finished? Should I add anything? Should I subtract anything?

Mural Work Day 8: Tues. Jan. 11, 2010

2010-01-13T13:59:00.000-08:00

My mural at the beginning of work day 8.

Can you see the difference in the background color here? One thing I have to do is to even out the background.

I also want to go over the vines, foliage and roots again.

Here I am with my mural at the end of day 8. I think that I might have just a half a day of work left as well as taking the mural off the wall when it is finished and totally dry.

Here is the mural. I think it is almost finished. What do you think?

As I left my storeroom "studio" I looked back and saw my mural. It looked pretty good!

This is what my mural looks like now.

My COSI Mural Progression Photos

2010-01-07T13:10:00.000-08:00

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

Day 4

Day 5

Day 6

Day 7

Mural Work Day 7: Wed. Jan. 6, 2010

2010-01-07T12:37:00.000-08:00

My family and I visited COSI over the holidays on Dec. 23, 2009 and this is a picture of us in front of my mural.

This is me with my mural on Dec. 23, 2009

My mural at the start of work day 7, Jan. 6, 2010.

I am going to work on the "tree lady", the hands at the bottom, and the vines in the top of the tree. My daughter, Lydia, suggested that I should add roots at the bottom of the globe so I am going to try this.

Here are the changes to the hands.

I added vines to the top of the painting.

I'm working on the tree lady and adding more vines.

Here is a closeup of the vines and the face.

My mural is almost finished so I took down my wall of reference photos today.

This is what my mural looked like at the end of Day 7. I think that it will take just one more day of work to redo the background, because it seems uneven, and do some other touch ups.
I can't believe that my mural is almost finished!

Mural Work Day 6: Thursday Dec. 17, 2009

2009-12-19T08:11:00.000-08:00

This is my mural at the beginning of my sixth day of work (fifth actual painting day). I want to work on the tree foliage today and the vines.

This is a picture of where my workspace is at COSI. It is behind the wall that is between these two doors.

Here are my supplies at the beginning of the day. I had to get some more tree pictures for my work today.

I am working on the top of the painting and have decided to use an "Impressionistic effect" for the tree foliage.
I also worked on the globe again, making it lighter. I also worked on the face, but I think that it still needs more work.

Here is one side of the vines. I decided to make a twisting effect for the vines, I think that it gives it more life.

Here is the other side of the vines.

I am almost finished! So I added my signature today.

Here I am with my mural at the end of the sixth work day. I am going to take a break now for the holidays and come back to it after the first of the year.

I think it is almost finished! Maybe one-two more days of work! Please give me your comments. What should I change or add to the painting?

Here is a view of the mural from one door.

And this is what it looked like as I left on my sixth day of work. Can't believe that it has gone so fast!

Mural Work Day 5: Monday Dec. 14, 2009

2009-12-15T11:12:00.000-08:00

My mural at the beginning of day 5. I want to work on the vines and the globe today.

Once again I need to paint out the vines which means that I will need to mix and paint more light blue. It has been difficult to get the same color but I try to blend it over the original so I won't have to cover the whole painting again.

I've finished my second container of white making more light blue!

Here is a detail of the vines after I changed them.

I darkened the globe, but it is too dark...

So I lightened it again...

Here is another detail of the vines and globe at the end of the day.

Here is my mural at the end of my fifth work day. I plan on putting one more day of work in before Christmas and then take a break. It will be interesting to see how far I get!

COSI Mural Work Day 4: Tues. Dec.8, 2009

2009-12-08T14:06:00.000-08:00

My Mural at the beginning of the day today. It still needs a lot of work!

I didn't like the blue that I used in the background, so I am trying something a little different. Not sure I like this either. Can you see the difference?

First thing I did today was to fill in the green at the top of the tree.

Then I decided to once again paint the blue background. I mixed three different blues and two different kinds of white together. I think I like this color better that what I had before. I also made the background much stronger, which was needed. Unfortunately I covered the vines again and they needed to be repainted again.

I added the tree branches at the top of the painting and the vines at the bottom again.

I also worked on the hands at the bottom and the body at the top of the globe.

Well this is the mural at the end of day four. The last thing I did today was to add some dark green in the tree. It is really beginning to come to life.

Here I am in front of my mural getting ready to leave for the day.

I have met a lot of nice people at COSI. They have all be so supportive of my project.
This is Terry White and me. I met him on my first day of painting. We just might be long lost relatives, because my maiden name was White. We have had some fun discussions about family history. Wouldn't it be funny if we were related?!

COSI Mural Work Day 3: Friday Dec. 4, 2009

2009-12-05T12:11:00.000-08:00

I'm ready to begin my third day of work on my COSI mural. This is what the mural looked like when I begin the day. I replaced all the blue tape (that was coming off) with good old masking tape.

These are my supplies ready to go on this day.

At the beginning of the day I took some time out of working on the mural to paint some test strips so that they could test the fire proofing material on them. The mural will have to be treated with something to fire proof it when it is finished.

Then I dug into the mural! First I worked on this day was to change positioning of the globe and hands. The hands and globe needed to come up from the bottom of the canvas to allow room at the bottom of the canvas for mounting it at the end of the project.

We decided that the design should be at least 4 inches from the bottom of the canvas. So I made this change.

Next I decided to paint the background and this is me working on the background.

Most of the rest of the day was spent getting the light blue background into the mural.

I finished off my first container of paint doing this! Guess I will probably have to buy some more white!

Here is the mural with the light blue back ground in place. I'm not sure if I like the color. I'm thinking about making it a lighter blue.

Next I spent some time working on the globe and hands some more.

Last I added the vines into the painting again.

And my third day of work was finished. I don't feel like I got quite as much accomplished today as I did my first day of painting.
Seems like I spend a lot of time setting up at the beginning of the day and then cleaning up at the end. Guess that's all a part of it, too!

Here I am with my mural at the end of the day.
I added some paint splats onto my pants. Bought these "paint pants" specially for this job and I hope to be wearing many more of the colors by the end of the project.

As I left that day I looked back at my mural through the door and it looked pretty good!

COSI Mural Work Day 2: Dec. 2, 2009

2009-12-02T16:28:00.000-08:00

Here I am ready to begin the second day of work on my mural.

Here is a better picture of my storage room "studio" space. It is actually quite nice. It is between two large exhibitions spaces at COSI with entrances on either side of the room.

This is one entrance to the storage room. You can see my "studio" through the door.

This is the other entrance to the space. You can also see my "studio" here as well as the hallway window.

My "studio" when I am finally ready to begin painting after organizing my space, reference photos (on the far wall) and all my materials. Ready...set....go!

Here, hopefully, you can see my beginning sketch.

My first strokes of paint. After doing the vines I thought that I should fill in the face so that my painting could begin to take life!

And she really did take life after only a few strokes! I guess I will have to come up with a name for her...any ideas?

More paint is added....

I begin to add the blue background. I am surprised how quickly the painting is beginning to take shape!

I put the hands under the globe in.
I begin to fill in the globe and add the tree limbs at the top of the painting. I am having a little difficulty with the hands and the shape of the globe, but it still looks pretty good!

Finished for the day. I have adjusted the globe and the hands a bit. Maybe the hands are too skinny? Will have to work on them more next time!

My work space when I am finished. Things don't look as neat as when I began!

Here is a better look at the mural when I am finished for the day.

This is me and my mural at the end of the day. I am surprised how much I got done in one day!

2009-12-01T14:54:00.000-08:00

Here is my design for my COSI mural. I call it Living Earth. I can't wait to see what it will look like on the 7 X 12 foot canvas!

Day One Tuesday Nov. 24, 2009

2009-12-01T14:04:00.000-08:00

In Oct. I was awarded the opportunity of doing a mural at COSI. Here it is nearly Dec. and I am finally getting started on it. I am so excited to be here at COSI at last.

I will be working in a storeroom in COSI. Don't worry, just like everything at COSI it is a very large store room! Here is a picture of the work space before I put the canvas up.

Here the canvas is in place and ready to begin. Can't wait to get started painting, but I have decided to start painting on another day.

My daughter Lydia helped me to put the canvas in place on the wall. I couldn't have done it without her. Thanks Lydia!

This is me with the mural before we left that day. I did begin to sketch the painting out on the canvas. I can't wait to get back to it next week!