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This series shows Butler's process of converting a mural designed first as a sketch and imported into Photoshop to fill in the details for a 12 ft. x 20 ft. wall mural, which was then converted into a framed fine-art digital reproduction on LexJet Sunset Fine Art Satin SUV by Hahnemuhle with the Butlers' Mutoh printer, from A to E. A shows the original mural design, B is the standard frame chosen for the reproduction, C is the problem of fitting the design into the frame, D is solving the problem in Photoshop by re-sizing and positioning the design, and E solves the problem of the additional negative space. Though it appears Butler used a custom-cut mat, it's actually built in Photoshop, creating an effective illusion.
David Butler is one of the original originals in the sign business. Butler has been a master of the craft, from hand painting and gilding to the Photoshop era, mixing and matching the two as necessary over the years.
Though a true craftsman and now a digitizing expert, Butler is best known for his design prowess. He has a distinct style that resonates with anyone who comes upon it. That’s why when someone is planning a big “walldog” event where sign artists literally paint the town, they call on Butler to lend a hand, as was the case at a recent event in Minneapolis organized by Carole Bersin called Walldogs on Nicollet.
Close-up of the texture, beveling, and shadowing work Butler did in Photoshop to create the illusion of a mat inside the frame.
Butler’s wall mural project was to memorialize the old Nicollet Baseball Park, located in the Nicollet neighborhood of Minneapolis. The wall mural was eventually turned into four fine-art reproductions that Butler and his wife, Susie, printed on LexJet Sunset Fine Art Satin SUV by Hahnemuhle with his Mutoh printer.
“I really like the look of the paper. We’ve printed on a lot of stuff, from vinyl to canvas, but as far as showing the details, it’s perfect,” says Butler. “We have a lot of digital artwork we think could be printed on this material, matted, and framed. One of the big holdbacks we’ve had on doing this type of work is the kind of material we’re going to put the artwork on to really market it. You don’t want to put it on a piece of vinyl; that’s crazy. We thought about the wallpaper, and I suppose that’s an option they can go with. But this material would work perfect, and it’s easier to work with than canvas.”
Case in point is a recent digital mural Butler created for a local grocery store. The approximately 6 ft. x 20 ft. mural depicting the history of Syracuse, Ind., where, by chance, Butler Design Agency is located, draws more than its fair share of attention. It’s a stunning piece consistent with Butler’s extreme attention to detail and design skills.
Many shoppers have expressed an interest in having a smaller version of the design hanging in their home, business, or vacation cottage. Now, Butler feels like he’s found a material that allows him to fulfill those requests.
A sampling of the 6 ft. x 20 ft. mural Butler printed for a local grocery store that created numerous requests from shoppers for custom artwork for their homes, businesses, and vacation homes. Now, with Sunset Solvent & UV-Curable Media, Butler can fulfill these requests with his solvent printer.
Butler’s typical design process is to start off, literally, at the drawing board with pencil and paper. For the Nicollet Walldog mural he then took his sketch, scanned it in, and worked on the sketch from there in Photoshop.
So, ironically enough, for what will be an almost purely analog production technique (painting on a wall), Butler creates a digital image of the design. He also vectorizes the image, uses the pounce pattern function on his plotter, and pounces the pattern on paper, so the design can be chalked up on the wall and filled in with paint.
“I start the process in the most basic design mode, then I get into the most modern design mode we have, and then I get on a wall and paint. It’s awesome because you can blend these two disciplines together. You can live in both worlds and benefit from both of them,” says Butler. “My whole existence revolves around creating a problem and trying to solve it, and that’s the way I design. I create a problem and then I look for solutions to make that design work, like putting a rectangle in a square as I had to do when converting the wall mural to a framed digital reproduction. And in Photoshop, you have just got to get in there with a little magnifying glass and look around. The solution’s hiding in the corner sometimes, so go in there… don’t be afraid… go in that dark corner… look close… and there it is.”