trompe l'oeil

 

Radisha has been an important part of my team for years!

I have often said that my ideas are really unfulfillable without my treasured “team”.

One of my favorite team members has and will always be my dear friend and talented artist Radisha.

He has been creating sensational works of art for me for over 27 years. I first came across

his work in…(1989!) at, of all things, an “Estate Sale”!  I bought several things I thought were old Italian painted furniture;

and was going on-and-on about them, until the owner said:  “Would you like to meet the artist?   I almost

fainted!  He was at the time a Canadian citizen and was born in Serbia then studied art in Canada.

We have been working together on countless projects ever since.

 He is skilled in many styles of painting, as you will see in the following pictures.

One of my favorite things in his art is his sense of whimsy!

Radisha has the ability to carry his artwork beyond the canvas to many different applications.

 From painted screens to murals, he is able to adapt different styles and

techniques to always create a beautiful end result!

This is a four-panel screen in a Renaissance style.

This is a bedroom in Virginia with a “faux marbre” dado.

One of my favorites!  a trompe l’oeil  ledge with a mother dove on her nest in a powder room.  Doesn’t she look surprised?!

This painted panel is a perfect example of Radisha’s whimsical style, always emphasizing nature and  romance!

A tiled niche Radisha designed and painted in a loggia in Santa Barbara.

Some lovely Chinoiserie murals.

Pictured above is a painted mural Radisha created on a blank wall.

 The curtains matched the dining room  curtains which is to the right through  an archway!

The house is an Italian Villa by Reginald Johnson;  so the view is of the countryside in Tuscany.

This was the first job we worked on together.  His paintings made this beautiful gallery “come alive!”

The owner;  an attorney, called me one morning (she was supposed to look at and approve

 the  water color renderings of the gallery the afternoon before); she said…… “Oh!

 I was so distracted by the  new wallpaper in the kitchen;

 I forgot  to look at the gallery renderings!  I hope I am not holding anything up!!”

I said, “Well;  when I didn’t hear from you, he painted it all last night!

And just so you know;  the overdoor in the middle is a man with an artichoke growing out of his head!”

 Fortunately, the whole family loved it all!!!

This was a great project to work with Radisha on;  the murals as well as all of his over-door

painting and details painted around sconces, etc.

are still (27 years later) a beautiful feature of the house.

See below photos of Radisha’s work from this project.

Detail behind a sconce (one of eight in the main gallery, all different).

Close up of one of paintings behind the sconce.

An over-door detail where the man has an artichoke growing out of his head, amazing!!

The upstairs hallway where each arch has a different painted scene.

This is a detail from one of the arches where you can see the owners two children running with the family dog!

Another overdoor panel at the opposite end of the gallery from the   “window”

It is such a luxury to have an artist

like Radisha to make such a difference in a project!