Art News

Taste change, and wallpaper peels--but never when you want it to, unfortunately.

Paint a wall, though, and you'll never have to contend with either of these things, says Betty Newman, a Marco Island faux and decorative artist.

"Especially down here in Florida, wallpaper is so awful," Newman says with a laugh.

She doesn't want to offend anyone--more than anything, she says people should have what they want in their home--but she has seen what wallpaper can do.

It peels in the humidity. Or it hides water damage behind it, revealing the problem only when someone tries to scrape it down.
Her work is gaining popularity among islanders who recognize these problems, or among those who simply want something unique and specific to their home. People can have whatever they want with a mural, "from funky to gold leafing to wood graining", Newman says.

I can pretty much recreate any marble, stone look you can think of," she says.
She has completed projects in the Florida Keys, and other South Florida areas. On Marco her commerical projects include The Bombay Club, Joyful Child Learning Center and Tara's Steakhouse.

In private homes, she has done everything from metallic striping on walls to palm trees to coral stone and marble reproductions. She has dabbed wood grain paints on ceilings and columns, even a wood stove hood she painted and textured to make it look like copper. She has created plants and flowers, monkeys and fish.

One of her most successful projects was a brick wall she painted in a bathroom, with yellow flowers creeping out from between the cracks. People walked up to touch it to see if it was real, Newman says.

With such a variety of requests, Newman is reluctant to name the most popular faux-finish trend. In the house where she made the metallic striping, in another room her client wanted all earth tones. It varies dramatically, although people generally prefer natural lighter colors, she says.

"I start to talk to them and get to know a little about their personalities" before beginning a job. Once an idea takes shape. Newman begins to work.