Flora arriving at Napa from Hawaii version one- artwork property of Flora Springs Winery
I'll be creating a 14 x 40 foot mural for the side of Wilfred's Lounge in Napa!
It's been in the planning for 9 months plus....But after talks/concepts/ and City Council Approvals the Wheels have finally started turning and the panels are finally at the studio!
But before we share all that,let's start at the beginning...
with Flora Cabral,later to be Flora Komes....
She was born in 1911 and grew up in Honolulu Hawaii.
At 18 she ventured overseas to San Francisco to attend nursing school.
She met and married Jerry in 1935,but only after graduating and securing a position as a nurse.
The couple had three children and moved around through California and Texas for Jerry's engineering career,eventually landing them back in San Francisco, working for Bechtel Corporation. In 1977,the couple purchased 325 acres of land and 60 acres of vineyards from the Martini estate,which became the Flora Springs winery,established by John and Carrie Komes and Pat Garvey and named in honor of Flora and the natural springs that run thru through the property. John Kome's talent as a contracter allowed him to renovate the old ghost winery building and other original buildings on the property .Here's a link to their site and rich family history.
https://www.florasprings.com/our-legacy/story/
So now you have some content for the final result we will reach later....
oh! and this is for the outside of WILFRED'S LOUNGE in Napa. Wilfred was the brother of Flora and a bartender in Honolulu while living on the island.
Here's a great article on the interior,which was built by Bamboo Ben Bassham and Billy Crud
When first approached with the opportunity (Thank you Billy Crud,for the recommendation!),we were thinking of renting out a warehouse and having it all staged out with 4 huge 14 x 10 foot panels and scissor lifts and on location up in Napa for 10 days/2 weeks of solid mural painting.
As Covid and all that disarray was spreading last year,we eventually decided on creating it in the studio in Orange and then shipping,or getting it delivered by vehicle. Once all that was figured out,it was time to work on concepts....
Here are a few of them that were suggested by John and his son,Nat, who is the owner and original brainchild of Wilfred's, and a few i conjured up...
Outrigger in a Bottle- artwork property of Flora Springs Winery
This first piece was a twist on the "ship in the bottle" theme
picturing instead, a Hawaiian Outrigger, passing an island that resembles the mountains of St. Helena,where the future site of Flora Springs winery resides.
She is standing proudly at the prow,bringing a bounty of grapes to her future home.
Downtown Napa Skyline Colorway One-artwork property of Flora Springs winery
Downtown Napa Skyline Colorway Two-artwork property of Flora Springs winery
This second concept was an offbeat Tropical transformation of the DownTown Napa Skyline and Napa River Shoreline. While a fun idea to realise, it didn't have the impact of some of the other options....
Here's a picture of Downtown Napa at the riverfront...
Meanwhile,under the depths of the Napa River...
Deep Sea Diver/Shipwreck Wine Cellar-artwork property of Flora Springs winery
This suggestion from the Komes was very fun to create. A Deep Sea Diver and Shipwreck Wine Cellar!
i liked the idea of a moody underwater scene, to play off the parts of Wilfred's Lounge that are nautical and made to resemble a ship's interior AND because it is a scene that could be happening in the depths of the Napa River nearby. A Diver and Crab enjoy the vintage spoils of a sunken wine barrel shipment. Another really cool concept,but no references to Flora or Hawaii...
Here's some of the elements i drew up to be able to move props and undersea characters around as the design formed...
Time to reflect back on the Hawaiian aspect of this family's story...
Tiki Vineyard-artwork property of Flora Springs winery
The next idea was to picture a Tiki Vineyard. A Tiki Vineyard would be taking the Hawaiian and St Helena aspects of the Komes' story,and combining them in a way that welcomed the viewer to participate in the celebration of these two cultures. Wilfred's lounge,it's owner Nat Komes,and manager Michael Cobb (of Hi-Roller Tiki Lounge fame) all have experience and will be offering wine-based cocktails in addition to traditional Tiki Bar spirits and concoctions.
Here's some other colorways that explored the mood and time of day of this scene.....
Tiki Vineyard-artwork property of Flora Springs winery
Tiki Vineyard-artwork property of Flora Springs winery
Flora Springs in a Bottle-Tiki Vineyard-artwork property of Flora Springs winery
And here's another exploration into the initial "Outrigger in a bottle" concept. the essence of Flora Springs winery pours gracefully from a giant wine bottle and begins a journey over the hills and vineyards of St. Helena. She carries a fruitful bounty and shares tropical plants,fabric prints and Hawaiian Ku and Lono Tikis with this Land of Vineyards.
Here's a Brighter and more "Sears Catalog" retro colorway
Flora Springs in a Bottle-Tiki Vineyard-artwork property of Flora Springs winery
and here is the one that spoke to us all the most.
John,the founder,suggested something to do with the First Street Bridge in Napa.
First Street Bridge with outrigger-artwork property of Flora Springs winery
The First Street Bridge has gone through many changes since Flora and Jerry arrived,but the original stone bridge seemed the most friendly for a tropical flavored environment. Here's some pictures of that bridge.....
First Street Bridge with outrigger-artwork property of Flora Springs winery
So here is the picture that everyone liked. it captured the symbol of Flora and Flora Springs at the front of an outrigger and about to enter into the land of napa.... There is a Lono style tiki on the left....inviting the viewer into the painting,and also offering a bowl of fruit for the newcomers. Above him is a rich bounty amidst a scene of lush vegetation and calm cool waters. John,the owner,requested a tiki Winepress,so we added that at the other end for offset.
here's the original study i did for John....
So, after a long laborious process, the artwork and planned installation was approved by the city.
Then i found out that there was suddenly a door where there wasn't one previously...
and it cut off the best part of the mural....the outrigger!
That isn't good,and interrupts the viewer's experience when the doors were opened......
Half the crew is missing !
First Street Bridge with outrigger-artwork property of Flora Springs winery
It needed a little adjustment... Something that didn't interrupt with the main image...
So we came up with this......
First Street Bridge with outrigger-artwork property of Flora Springs winery
First Street Bridge with outrigger-artwork property of Flora Springs winery
The rowers were allowed to paddle forward a few strokes to avoid being trimmed,and that area was replaced with more lush jungle vegetation,things not necessary to move the "story" of the piece along.
We had planned on dividing it into 16 5 x 7 foot panels,but switched that to the more common and easier to acquire 4 x8 foot maple panels 1" thick....and changed it to TWENTY 4 x 7 foot panels
So we finally got the wood panels ordered and delivered...
They were/are HEAVY!
Day One July 5th 2021
Day Two july 6th 2021
Time to gesso these beautiful panels.... But how much gesso?
After checking with a few sources/places....everyone had answers,but none of them were the same!
So i bought a gallon of gesso and set out to figure out how many panels i can gesso with a gallon.. And then i'll apply that to figuring out how many gallons i need for the remaining panels....
here's some photos of today..... So far,half a gallon is gone,but i have covered Three of the 4x7 panels with 2 coats...
First Coats!
Second Coat application! I think i could probably finish 3-4 of these a day....After that my arm would get too sore... Here i am in my painting gear,standing on a metal toolbox to reach the top of this panel...
What a Dork!
Here's a better shot.... looks a bit more professional and determined....
DAY 3
Day 3 and 6 panels are done!
Wait? What is that i SEE?
Is that a MOAI? What's he doing here on the Mural? This mural is Hawaiian-based!
DAY 4
It's Day 4 and so far... Got a total of NINE 4 x7 foot panels GESSOed! YAY!
Taking a break as it dries....
working on these sideways is a lot easier than trying it vertical...No need to stretch my arms to incredible lengths!
Making unintentional art onto the studio's cement floor! A time-consuming process that has taken YEARS!
GESSO!
Fast Forward to the first week of August
After Tiki Oasis.... All Twenty panels are Gessoed ...Twice!
The Winter of Gesso has been Conquered!
Seeing as these panels are 4 x 7 feet...the two coats add about 6-7 pounds of weight to these beasts...
Tho, moving them around has gotten easier.... Fringe benefit.... Cardio!
Next step is applying a grid to the panels.... 1 x 1 foot
in order to transfer the art to the panels.....
My first impression was that i could work on these sideways
treating each shape as a...shape,and not a specific THING
Like a Palm tree,or vegetation.. i thought that would help for a more accurate transfer of the drawing..
Boy was i wrong!
But More of that later,dear friends!
I began to grid out the surface of panel 10
the panel on the top Far Right at the end.
Figured i would work right to left Top Row first.....
Here's what i was going to start with for the first 4 x 7 foot panel...
The panel was also reduced to a blackline/contour line drawing...
The Nifty thing about this grid method is that it allows for as much detail as you want.
Well... All this excitement and Anticipation to ACTUALLY START DRAWING
needed a lil speedbump just to humble things up a bit...
After a nice proper sanding,i began to grid out the 12" squares
and noticed something strange..... the panels were.....a bit.........off!
Note to Self: Always measure wood panels for a mural upon receiving them
Because sometimes they might be 4 feet 1/2 inch wide and....get this....
7 feet 5 3/8 inches! An extra 5 3/8 inches!
Needless to say... i was flummoxed and began to pace.....
Pacing helps...
Called Stephen, the contractor and decided on simply trimming the TOP 5 3/8" off the top Ten panels
while trimming the BOTTOM 5 3/8" from the bottom panels..... They will be doing that on-site in Napa
which is a relief,as i'm not too good at power tools...tho this electric sander is something else!
The Sanding phase is the brief Desert,an attempt to "smooth things over" for the acceptance of Art
onto it's surface! It's a nice meditative phase before the grid/drawing application
I can finish a panel in about 5 minutes and it's SMOOOOOOTH! Real Nice!
So with that Fire extinguished.... it was time to begin transferring the drawing sideways..
Well, after a day of struggling to view those lines as lines and NOT things
My head began to ache at translating...
So........ VERTICAL it is!
SO much easier to process,transfer,and Elaborate upon!
After a few days of Nervous Anticipation,i had finally gotten my Sea-Legs and was
locked and Loaded and cliqued in.....
Funny how each major step in this journey starts with anticipation and insecurity..
We are,after all, only humans....BUT! What awesome things have people achieved with drive and passion and determination! THAT is what carries me through this... A hope that i can create something awe-inspiring for a wonderful client in a wonderful town...Something the city can enjoy..
Also got up early and bought a nice 40 buck stepladder that is sturdy and helps me from toppling from a milk crate! Add that to the Cardio!
And after a few hours of readjusting my perspective
from Horizontal to Vertical
i had found a good match and a path to transfer this design faster
only took about 3 hours....Bet i can reduce that to 2 after a few of these!
First Panel (number Ten)
Sucessfully Transferred!
Here's a view of some other elements in the panels around it.....
As you can see the handle of the Tiki Winepress peeks up into the Number 10 panel
I will be taking the art and squishing it just a tad to have it fill the bottom right number 20 panel
i'll also be adding more detail to it....
But that's a few panels down the road and quite manageable....
Who could have predicted that there is so much pleasure in the interplay of struggle and reward?
Here's a few candid WIP Glimpses that my darling wife Aimee decided to capture...
Afte that, i sanded and prepped the surface of panel 9
just to the left of panel 10
For an Early Saturday Morning ASSAULT!
Well....it's getting late,and i am determined to get 2-3 more panels done...
Also will be ordering the paints soon!
Now THAT part is going to be SO rewarding!
Until next addition......
The Tale of panel 9 and 8..
Next was Panel 9.... Just to the Left of the sketched out panel 10
This one is mostly the palms and a bit of the Old First St Bridge...
Here's is the Art i was to transfer
a blackline/contour line drawing to indicate areas for different colors
And here is how it will eventually look....
Here's how this particular Top Panel area looks all together... Each Square represents 1x1 feet
The gessoed panel is sanded and then a 1x1 foot grid is drawn out in blue pastel pencil. Then i start to freehand transfer the image ,using the grid for a guide. This is done with a red pastel pencil.
This is to record the initial design. Once i stack them side by side
Raw unber acrylic is going to be used to solidify the proper line and also to "join each panel accurately.
Here are some more clips of the process
Man! If my Charles Nelson Reilly t-shirt wasn;t so COOL,i would melt from the heat in the Hot August Studio!
As you could see in the previous clips,the raw umber Clearly shows me where the color is going to go
and pops it forward from errant lines....
So, Now it's onto the NEXT panel... Number Eight!
Here is the Art with grid applied
And here is what it is destined to look like....
This section is the cool ,moss coated stone bridge.... the Quarry! Do you see those grapes near the bottom? I plan on adjusting the art so that Flora and grapes will be on the bottom panel together.
I will be doing the same with the Tiki Winepress in the far right bottom corner. It has it's handle and left side cut off onto the neighboring panels. So i will be slightly adjusting that art when the bottom panel phase begins.....
Anyway... back to the drawing transfer....
These rocks were a BIT confusing at first until i established a baseline for each row and used that to place each one.
Went on a tear and didn't really record much of the process..just the raw umber finished product...
and here they are stacked against each other
NOW WE GET TO............Panel SEVEN!
Here is the Gridded up version for me to refer to during the transferring of the drawing to wood panel.
Here's what it will look like after finally applying the paint....
I can't tell you the anticipation felt in the studio as the ACTUAL painting part gets closer into focus.....
and here it is in progress as it's being sketched out. Ive been using a pastel pencil
Sanguine for the actual design and Indigo for the grid. The pastel pencil is nice because it can be easily erased in case i make a miscalculation... After i finish sketching it out,i cover the distracting lines with a light coat of gesso.
Next step i move this panel (number 7) next to panel 8 to make sure the lines match up and the design flows effortlessly between panels. Once placed next to the panel, i then fill in the sanguine (red) with Raw Umber acrylic to further emphasize the lines before painting. I will be giving these panels ONE more sanding before applying the paint... Getting my money's worth with this electric palm sander!
I didn't get any shots of 7-8-9 panels together,but you get the picture....get it? "picture"? groan....
NEXT UP ....
PANEL SIX!
Here's the grid and color version 
This is the cool area under the bridge... with a HUGE flower!
I will be adding more detail to these areas when the painting starts...
This sketching out of the image is to act as a GUIDE,where i keep the good elements/placement and slightly enhance/adjust the art to perfection for the final piece....
Here it is in progress... sketched out with the pastel pencil..
and a close-up of my reference as i maneuver around this monster...
And here it is ,awaiting placement next to the other panels and application of the raw umber acrylic....
You can see the sepia application on the panel 7 (with the torch) and panel 6 to the left as i get the main lines formalized and matched up....
Three 4 foot wide panels together.... This is only 12 feet of horizontal coverage for the top half of the design. Here is the amount of space sketched out so far.....
Panel 6 is on the left.....
and here is where we are in comparison with the WHOLE top half of this mural.....
NEXT UP! PANEL 5!
GRID
COLOR REFERENCE
and here is the 5 panel layout that i will be tackling next...
Here's my POV for the next week or so.....
Keeping a printout of the area to tackle in relation to what else is to come.....
Starting to slowly take shape....
sketched out panel, awaiting raw umber acrylic once set up next to panel 6...
here is panel 5 (far left) next to panels 6 and 7.
And Now..... PANEL 4 Friday!
Panel 4 is going to be Tiki Torches,some Bridge masonry,more Grapes and even a Pam tree!
Since it got too late to grid out Panel 4 last night,it was a FULL Day dedicated to this one....
Sanded,Applied the Grid,and then plunged into transferring the drawing, listening to Dan Carlin's Hardcore History and the tragic account of the SS Indianapolis,one of the greatest tragedies of the Second World War. Makes any effort/struggle on this end seem petty and easily overcome compared to the sacrifice,bravery,and sense of duty and heroism in the face of certain death.
During this episode https://youtu.be/Jqu7mM0kheE Carlin discusses what moved him to do an episode on this sad tale was Captiain Quint's speeech in JAWS,that he had watched earlier.
Quint recalled his experience at that tragic event and told of the poor soldiers and the multitude of sharks who tormented them for Days...
Anyways... i Highly recommend any of Carlin's Historical examinations...
Perfect to listen to if you have a project to finish....
Finished the pastel part
Had some dinner
Watched JAWS II (i know,huh?)
and then began to apply the raw umber acrylic .
Saving some of the raw umber for when i place this next to panel 5, to make sure it matches up.
AND DONE!
Next Up! PAnel THREE!
Grid and Color reference...
And here it is with the raw umber acrylic further refining the art....
Here's a fun little clip of the sketch when the overhead studio light gives it an Underwater vibe.
And here is yours truly taking the pastel pencil and blending it to fill out the initial design
before the raw umber acrylic ,seen in the photo above...
And here is Panel 3
placed next to panels 4 and 5...
Well, that is All
until PANEL 2!
SEPT 29 2021
Well.... Fast Forward a month and a few weeks
(The Business Park the studio is at redid their roofing and i lost my landline phone and laptop and after a few sppedbumps, the laptop finally is back up at the studio! Needless to say, i am a child when it comes to navigating on my celphone,so i have been taking sporadic pictures of the process and will now attempt to play CatchUp!
When Last we chatted, only panels 2 were left to transfer for the TOP half of this mural....
Seeing as there's a lot to catch up
We shall ZOOM thru the drawing transfer process and get on to the PAINTING part..
So...HANG on! Here we gooooo!
PANEL 2 Drawing transfer...
Here it is ,Gridded out 
Here's a rare shot of panel 2 ,as it is drawn up....
Next up is PANEL ONE
the TOP of the Lono style Tiki's Headdress!
Unfortunately, i didnt get a photo of the drawing transfer.
And will have to wait until i tackle the pieces stacked in front of it and can pull it out
and photograph it before painting it....
Here is what the area for Panel ONE will look like....
Next... PANEL ELEVEN
Here is the artwork for this particular part of the story.
I call him "the Greeter" as he has a double purpose...
He helps to add to the atmosphere of Hawaii and the Pacific that Flora experienced
before her life in California.
Secondly,he will be greeting the visitors to Wilfred's lounge
(if you missed this detail earlier... Wilfred was Flora's Brother
AND a Bartender in Honolulu)
This Lono is meant to represent the warm and welcoming nature of the Komes family.
Note to Self: That signature,once seen in Real Scale....
is gonna be smaller...
And here is the only shot i took of the transfer drawing for this one....
(i was in the pocket and caught up in the project...)
So here is a phot of Panels ELEVEN and TWELVE,as i placed them side by side to match them up.
NEXT UP... PANEL TWELVE
The artwork for the panel....
And here is the initial transfer drawing before applying the raw umber for the underpainting and
clarifying the shapes...
and ...again...Here it is sized up next to panel ELEVEN...
NEXT!
PANEL THIRTEEN
this will be the area where they may have to cut out for the door,so i was sure to move any major elements out of that area.....
And here it is all tightened up and matched with panel TWELVE to the left....
and here it is all by it's lonesome!
PANEL FOURTEEN
This is also an area that is for the "door" area...
Not sure if it will be 2 big doors or just a single door with room for the door to be opened completely....
We shall see.....
The artwork that needs to be transfered...
and here it is with a few others....
(Panel 12 and 13) 
and then each one needs to be turned on it's side and the panel above each is sized up
vertically....
PANEL FIFTEEN!
The outrigger and occupants were slightly reduced and moved away from the door area.
This mural is about her and her arrival and i wasnt going to let a door change that!
This musician was inspired by a little gent from an old Hawaiian shirt.
He provides a tune for the rowers and Flora
as they approach the First Street Bridge to enter Napa...
Here is the initial sketching awaiting the underpainting....
And below with the sister panels and raw umber underpainting
PANEL SIXTEEN and PANEL SEVENTEEN
The Rowers
I wanted them to be a Unit a team working together
Their rowing provided a natural visual "trick"
Rhythm /Repetition in a painting can be used to "propel" a cart,a figure,etc.
Each one is going to have little smile or different attitude
as they row towards their destination....
PANEL EIGHTEEN
Flora at the helm of the outrigger as she approaches her new home
the grapes and her pose echo the Flora Springs Winery logo
PANEL NINETEEN
PANEL 20
The Tiki Winepress suggested by John Komes
i went ahead and refined it from the simpler version in the original concept sketch.
FINALLY!
Next step is figuring out the paints and amounts
and then the REAL FUN PART....Painting!
This concludes the PREPARATION segment of this 14 x 40 foot mural....
Will start a whole new blog entry for the PAINTING part!