Sculptor Larry Schueckler contacted us to execute the gilding on his large scale original sculpture of the Virgin Mary commissioned by Saint Mary’s Church in College Station, Texas. This statue was gilded with genuine 24k gold leaf over a 6 week period in the early Spring of 2023.
Concours d' Elegance Winner: 1948 Hafer Craft
The owner of this 1948 hand-built Hafer Craft requested period-correct gold leaf lettering on the stern and hull ID numbers as well as the wooden engine cover inside the boat. The boat won the Silver Cup at 2021 Keels & Wheels Concours d’ Elegance in Seabrook, Texas. This Hafer Craft is now permanently on display at the Great Lakes Maritime Museum in Iowa.
Indian Motorcycle’s Hillclimb Tribute Bike
Sean Starr was commissioned by Indian Motorcycles to design and execute the paintwork on a 2015 Indian Scout motorcycle to pay tribute to Indian's history in hillclimb motorcycle racing. The bike was built by Indianmotorcycles.net and made its debut at the 75th Anniversary Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in Sturgis, South Dakota on August 3, 2015 with an attendance that exceeded 1,000,000.
The bike traveled the world to dozens of motorcycle shows and events before being placed on permanent display at Indian Motorcycle’s Headquarters in Spirit Lake, Iowa.
Read more on Indian’s website here
Photos courtesy of Indian Motorcycle
eBay Motors ‘69 F100 Ranch Relic Build
This build by The Gentleman Racer was commissioned by eBay Motors for the 2022 Parts of America Tour. Sean Starr was brought in to concept and paint the lettering and pinstriping to create an authentic look that matched the age of the truck. The truck toured the United States with the rest of the builds with the finale in Los Angeles November 17, 2022
Hanuman Statue: Decorative Painting
This hand carved wooden statue of the Hindu God Hanuman was painted with gold metallics and matte finish Japan Colors. Here is a video short explaining the project:
Gold Leaf: Wooden Buddha
Photos by Exploredinary
This wooden carved Buddha from Sri Lanka received a specialty distressed finish gold leaf to provide an antiqued appearance. The leaf used was imitation gold leaf composed of copper and zinc then finished with a light antiquing glaze to seal in the leaf.
Gold Leaf Fort Worth: Le Margot
These Le Margot logos were executed in 23.75k genuine gold leaf with the white pearl executed in 12k white gold for their Fort Worth location. The graphics grace the front and rear entry doors and are accented by the address transom numbers executed in 23.75k gold leaf. All of the gold leaf was executed using the water gild method which provides a mirror like finish and done in reverse on the interior side of the glass.
Custom Mirror: Vagabond Hats Dallas
Photos by Cal Knapp and Sean Starr
This custom mirror was created in our studio for Vagabond Hat Company located in Dallas’ Cedars neighborhood. The piece was executed using verre eglomise techniques combining paints, mica powders, copper leaf and genuine gold leaf in 23.75k, 18k and 12k white gold with the mirror surface executed in genuine silver leaf.
The antique frame was stripped down and painted before receiving an antiqued copper leaf treatment followed with a subtle glaze finish.
The mirror hangs in Vagabond’s showroom where client’s can try on their hats during the sizing process.
Paul & Chris Andrews Car Collection Fort Worth
Sean Starr was commissioned by the Andrews Family of Fort Worth to create dozens of large scale art installations at the Paul & Chris Andrews Car Museum in Fort Worth.
"Paul Andrews knows what it’s like when the rubber hits the road. He also knows what it’s like to overcome a setback—and how to build something to show for it. Andrews founded the Fort Worth specialty electronics broker TTI (formerly Tex-tronics) in 1971 after General Dynamics laid him off, making him collateral damage from the grounding of an F-111 fighter jet project.
Shortly after TTI launched—and well before he sold the company to Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway in 2007—Andrews began building an exotic car collection, acquiring four-wheeled beauties from far-flung corners of the world. He has spent 41 years growing that collection and has put the vehicles on display in a Fort Worth museum with his son, Chris." D Magazine
Copper Leaf Signage: Vagabond Hats Dallas
Photos by Cal Knapp
This project for Vagabond Hats in Dallas’ Cedars neighborhood was executed in genuine copper leaf applied with an antiqued finish to create a storefront appearance that is both traditional and modern. All of the gilding on the glass was executed in reverse, to the interior side of the glass and the hanging metal sign was painted and gilded in our studio in Calvert. The copper will age and a slight patina will evolve over time and exposure to the sun which will provide an even richer, warmer glow to the copper leaf over time.
Gold Leaf Signs: Mister Charles Dallas
These window signs for Mister Charles in Dallas were executed in genuine 23.75k gold leaf using the water gilding technique. This type of gilding on glass is always executed on the interior side of the glass, in reverse which not only creates a deep, rich look but protects the gold from the elements and lasts for decades when cared for properly. The bathroom door lettering was executed using gold metallic oil based enamels.
Decorative Painting: Rumi's Uptown Houston
This massive antiqued mirror project measures approximately 23 feet in width and is adorned with a heavily detailed tree design. The color palette is a combination of soft toned colors creating a very muted effect that is soft and subtle. The artwork was executed in oil based enamels, custom mixed and blended by brush.
The mirror is located in the main dining hall at the soon to open Rumi’s Kitchen in Houston’s Uptown district, a new addition to the restaurant locations in Atlanta and Washington DC.
Classic Truck Lettering
Motorcycles
Classic Car Lettering
Maitri Sanskrit Art on Glass
Artist Sean Starr goes through the steps of creating an original verre eglomise gold leaf on glass art piece for a client in an Indian Hindu inspired design with sanskrit lettering of the name Maitri.
Vintage Pickup Truck Lettering
Sign Painter Sean Starr executes some Hand Painted Lettering on several vintage pickup trucks.
Sign Painters in Nepal
We went to Nepal in March of 2020 with filmmakers Daniel Driensky and Sarah Reyes of Exploredinary to document craftsmen still working by hand. We ended up stuck there when lockdowns began and eventually got flown home by the United States Embassy. Here’s some of the things we saw there including some innovative sign painters painting out of tiny studios in Kathmandu.
Om Mani Padme Hum Woodblock Print & Watercolor
Short step by step of Sean Starr hand carving a woodblock print and then coloring with watercolor paint of his original Buddhist prayer flag design of the ancient mantra Om Mani Padme Hum.
ཨོཾ་མ་ཎི་པདྨེ་ཧཱུྃ
ॐ मणि पद्मे हूँ
ॐ मणि पद्मे हुँ
Painting a Vintage Style Wall Mural in Calvert, TX
Come along as we paint a vintage style wall mural in our tiny town of Calvert, Texas. Sean’s apprentice Tristan joins us on this project that was executed during our annual Main street Festival.