Articles

Jody Florman: Decorative Painting

June 2008 Cover Story - Hands On Decor

Jody Florman says she’s been an artist since she was 5 years old, always working with her hands to create something beautiful. After majoring in art at the University of California, Santa Cruz, she moved to England to work as a costume designer for TV, film, and theatre. It was there her first husband showed her an ad for a decorative painting class. “Time stood still – I got chills,” Jody remembers. “I took the class, practiced for six months, and then went out and started painting.”

Jody’s repertoire today includes faux painting, stenciling, hand-painting, murals, and trompe l’oeil. For more than 20 years she’s been working on high-end homes all over the world, with a focus on the Southwest – she relocated to Camp Verde from Southern California less than three years ago. She works alone and has tackled everything from a powder room to an entire 15,000-sq.-ft. house. She says she’s seeing less call for faux painting, in which she uses brushes and rags to blend oil paints in four to seven different shades, and stenciling these days, but more for murals and hand-painting. “Hand-painting has a fluidity people like,” she says. “Typically I will hand-paint a border around a room or work on a ceiling. Tapestry designs are very popular right now.”
Jody prides herself on her versatility: Her two most recent murals were an underwater scene with mermaids and dolphins, and a nearly full-size ’60s peace bus. Even after more than two decades working at her art, Jody still finds she has tremedous enthusiasm for the house she’s working on at any given time. “I respond viscerally to people’s homes,” she explains. “I want your house to speak to you. It should be welcoming to everyone, but when you come home your house should be so much like you that every cell in your body relaxes.”
Clients will use murals on any expansive wall while Jody does a lot of hand-painting in powder rooms and kitchens. As you can imagine, Jody has embellished almost every room in her own home and she eschews white or neutral-colored walls. “Color scares people but they need to relax and allow it into their lives,” she says. “All rooms in my house are done in color – it uplifts the spirit and brings a different energy into the home. It makes you feel grounded, focused and alive.”

Jody Florman Artist of the Week

Manhattan Arts International

Praise for Jody Florman's work includes such comments as"bold and vibrant
colors" and "portraits that sparkle." A versatile and creative artist, Jody also
creates custom stencil designs, is an accomplished muralist, landscape and
architectural Trompe L'oeil artist.

She is currently accepting commissions for her visionary art, portraiture, florals, and landscapes.
View more of her work in our Online Gallery. Greetings from Manhattan Arts International
Manhattan Arts International is proud to present Jody Florman as one of the "Featured Artists of the Week" from June 9-15, 2008.

Though Jody Florman has created commission paintings (covering a variety of subjects) for over 15 years, she chooses to integrate
the deeper spiritual side of her life through her expression on canvas. Painting, and art, is her meditation, her creative outlet and
her blessing.

She traveled to Spain and Austria and learned the "Miche" or mixed and portrait techniques from Robert Venosa and Martina
Hoffmann, Professor Phil Rubinoff and Cynthia Rae Robbins, discovering a rich new avenue, making it possible to place her
visions directly on canvas.

Best wishes,
Renee Phillips, Director
Manhattan Arts International
email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
web: http://www.ManhattanArts.com
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