Paintings on walls— from "caves" to "technology"

Ancient cave dwellers painted their walls with images of animals and birds. Sioux Falls muralist, Darla Larsen, has taken the skill of wall art to a new, high-tech level.
Darla recently was commissioned to do a 30-foot long waterfall painting for Donegal Pointe, a luxury apartment. Recognizing that painting on such a grand scale requires lots of moving to view her work, Darla Larsen has utilized the latest in wireless video signals to broadcast a visual aid to a television monitor on her double-decker scaffold. “It’s a real necessity to back-away from my mural painting often to view the mural from a distance to be sure I’m getting the desired Trompe’loil effect I am seeking”, the artist points out. “But when you work from high scaffolding, as I often do, one is very cautions about stepping back to view one’s progress”, Darla added with a smile.
To solve her problem, Darla has installed wireless camera across the room, which then can be viewed on a television or video camera. Not only does this allow the Muralist to review her latest progress without additional effort, but she has also downloaded movie clips of her current painting progress this website. This allows curious onlookers to check out the latest progress of the most current mural.

On this current project, Chris Lee (from Rock Garden Landscaping) and Darla are working together to create faux rocks as well as a real waterfall to get the desired effects.

Darla Specializes in “Trompe’loil” type of murals, utilizing both perspective and three-dimensional sculpture to “fool the eye” of the viewer. Her realistic murals are on exhibit in Sioux Falls at Craftsman Creek Gallery on 8th Street and at Donegal Pointe Luxury apartments on West 57th Street.