Meghan Taylor: Illustration & Graphic Design

Lessons in Beer and Art

Ah, alcohol and paint – to me this is a blissfully perfect union. I indulged in this very pairing last week during an orientation and training for Blue Moon Beer and its campaign for beer-centric Community Created Art. (More updates on this forthcoming. Suffice it to say that soon I will be in bars in NYC helping fellow beer drinkers make art and learn about Blue Moon).

What I got from the training was a wonderful lesson in the history of Blue Moon, and great respect for its founder and master brewers. It is definitely a craft beer, and tasting Blue Moon’s other beer inventions was a delightful and explorative adventure for the tastebuds.

I also met a plethora of other muralists (wow, ever been in a room with 30 other people with the exact same, very specific, interest in common? Its startling how the conversation gets so detailed so fast.), which was completely inspiring. I am excited to start working with Blue Moon on this campaign. yay for art, beer, and murals!

Designing… but Muraling sometimes too!

I am way focused on graphic design these days: free lancing, working on personal projects, learning new techniques. It is my newfound super-hobby.

Two years ago, i was practically bathing in mural paint. My love for painting has not diminished an ounce, even if I don’t get to focus on it as much. But this is a small alert that I am still available for mural commissions! I’ll be starting a muraling project with Blue Moon Beer shortly, and I’ve just updated my FindaMuralist profile. Check it! … and let me know whatcha think.

Mural Process: New Orleans Dreamin

One of my current projects is this mural that I’m painting on canvas, which will later be installed with wallpaper paste onto a wall of a home bar. Just finished the section that will fit underneath the stair case (hence the weird shape). Here’s what I got:

Met Branch Trail Mural: Before & After

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Check out more shots and the community that helped to paint these murals here.

My Day on the Trail

It was super rockin! Unbelievably hot and muggy, but the community spirit overcame the weather. Many folks stopped by to paint a few brush strokes, some staying for hours to leave their mark on the mural. All ages too, and all totally enthusiastic. It was a reaffirming kind of experience - and it reinforced the importance of community involvement in art and place. Here are some snap shots of the day… I’ll post a Flickr album once the mural is complete.

Prepping for Public Trail Mural

Today I primed two stone seating areas along DC’s new Met Branch Trail. All I was doing was painting these things white, but it instigated a lot of smiles, thank yous, and conversations with the trail users.

The big issue is that everything on this trail gets tagged within nano seconds of its placement. I am hoping these stay relatively clean through the night, since tomorrow is the big painting day. If you are available, come and meet the trail- tomorrow, Saturday, June 5, from 10am to 2pm. You can paint with me, or just enjoy the trail and community! Lots of activities going on…

Here’s some pics of today’s venture…. The before, tagged version of one of the benches:

Here it is prepped for some bright art to be added tomorrow: