Wonderful walls

Custom Home, July-August, 2004 by Stephani L. Miller

The faux finishers of Clark & Hall Studios offer a wide repertoire of traditional and unusual wall finishes, from exterior lime painting and interior Italian plaster to murals and trompe l'oeil.

While the company's approach is historic, says faux artist Barbara Clark, its methodology and philosophy are not. Instead of recreating historical decorative finishes, she says company artisans locus on creating beautiful interiors in any space.

Clark and her partner, Don Hall, use a variety of traditional techniques but also invent ways to use the traditional--and not-so-traditional-materials they work with. Their hand-embossed finish, shown here, is the result of a combination of common materials and very non-traditional techniques. Inspired by a wallpaper pattern, Clark and Hall achieved the embossed texture using a mix of drywall topping compound and Elmer's glue. The mixture was applied using cake-decorating bags and tips, then tea-stained, crackled, and highlighted with gold paint stippling. Clark meets with clients to get a feel for their vision of each project. "Every person has a picture of what they want the end product to be," she says. "So I ask them to describe or articulate their vision, what they want the end result to feel like." 772.231.7337. www.clarkhallstudios.com. Circle 153.