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A mural is any piece of artwork painted or applied directly on a wall, ceiling or other large permanent surface. A particularly distinguishing characteristic of mural painting is that the architectural elements of the given space are harmoniously incorporated into the picture.
Murals are large scale paintings which are applied directly to walls, ceilings, and other large flat surfaces.
They are the oldest human art form, as cave paintings at numerous human settlements suggest, and can be found all over the world decorating homes, institutions, and public spaces. A wide variety of artistic styles are used in mural painting, but all of them incorporate a large sense of scale, and the ability to portray a complex scene which is readable up close or far away.
In many cases, a mural is commissioned by a government or institution, because it represents a costly endeavor. For this reason, murals are often
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found in places like schools, government buildings, and on the outside of buildings in urban areas. Murals and the people who create them often become well known, due to the large scale and themes depicted. Diego
Rivera and Leonardo da Vinci were both muralists, as was Michelangelo.
Most muralists produce artwork in multiple media, rather than simply murals alone, demonstrating a remarkable range of skills, as it takes an excellent eye to meet the special needs of murals.
Classically, a mural is applied directly to a prepared surface such as a fresco. Fresco like that used in the Sistine Chapel is a wet plaster to which paints are added. As the paints dry, they fade slightly, but also lock into the plaster, making them longer lasting and less likely to flake or peel. Usually, a team of artists works together on a mural under the supervision of a master artist, who keeps the plans for the overall design and directs individual team members as they work on specific projects.
Murals are often associated with political expression, thanks to the work of muralists in the United States and Mexico in the 1930s and 1940s. In the
United States, an earlier tradition of political murals at the turn of the century had given way to more neutral themes, but the New Deal and the
Works Progress Administration rekindled the political mural. In both nations, murals focused on workers, the lives of the lower classes, harvesting food, preparing meals, and other errata of daily life, a marked departure from the highly religious murals and frescoes of the Middle Ages.
It was also a shift from the glamorous promotional public art of the 19th cent ury, which encouraged viewers to “Move to Sunny California!” or enjoy various commercial products.
Many modern mural artists continue the tradition of political expression in
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their work, and produce large scale commentaries on social issues which also beautify the places they are installed in. Many urban areas, especially, have a thriving art movement of muralists who work in depressed neighborhoods to bring in light and color. Other mural artists focus on producing beautiful pieces of artwork which enhance environments like board rooms and other corporate spaces, along with environments like public buildings and schools.
To get started, you'll need to transfer your image onto the wall. By now you should have a sketch of what your mural will look like, so you'll need to enlarge the image into the wall using either one of these mural techniques: the grid method or an art projector. Use a pencil to trace the image onto your wall.
Now that you have your pencil outline, you can start the underpainting. The underpainting consists of large blocks of color, over which you will paint more detail later. Depending on the colors in your image, you can use interior household paint for large areas of color (blue skies, green fields, etc), or you can mix your artist-quality acrylic paints with a Liquitex Ultra
Matte Gel orMatte Gel Medium by using a 1:1 ratio.
From here on out, most mural techniques are similar to the painting techniques that you would use when painting with acrylics on canvas. Here are some of the many different mural techniques at your disposal:
 Sponging - Sponging is a good way to create the sense of texture in a mural, such as clouds in the sky or leaves on a tree. You can also sponge a color on top of another color to create more of a sense of depth and interest, rather than leaving an area as a flat, single block of color.
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Sponging is also one of the handy mural techniques for quickly filling in large areas with color.
To sponge, first wet your sponge and squeeze out the excess water.
Dip your damp sponge lightly into your paint, then lightly blot the sponge on some paper towels. You don’t want your sponge to be too loaded with paint, or it will ruin the effect.
 Stippling - Stippling is one of the popular mural techniques for creating detail without worrying about smooth blending. For instance, if you're painting a green field, you can bring it to life by stippling other colors into the green. Here's how to do it:
Apply a green underpainting, then after it is dry, paint a thin coat of a different color over top of it (for example, a yellow-green or a darker green).
While the paint is still wet, dab the wet paint with a dry stippling brush and dab the new color around until the new layer is all stippled. If done correctly, the new color will no longer looked "brushed on" and some of the underpainting will show through. You can repeat this mural technique as many times as you need
(with as many colors as you want) until your desired area is covered.
This is a nice mural technique for creating the illusion of a field alive with shades of green, dappled in yellow sunlight.
Stenciling - Stenciling is a popular mural technique because it is fairly simple and anyone can do it – you don't need any special art skills. You can buy stencils in a wide variety of shapes and sizes, from alphabet letters to farm animals to wildlife, trees, planets, you name it!
 To stencil, use a painters' tape to adhere the stencil to the wall. With one hand, hold the stencil in place and with your other hand, paint in
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the color. You need to be cautious around the edges, because you don't want too much paint build-up on the edges when you lift the stencil away. Use a sweeping, circular motion when applying paint near the edges to avoid build up.
You can also use a stencil as an outline, and paint in details later. For example, you can follow the mural technique described above to stencil the image of an alligator in a solid shade of green. Then remove the stencil and paint in details, such as eyes, teeth, and bumpy skin.
 Antiquing - Do you want to make your mural look old, emanating a sense of history into the room? You can achieve this by antiquing, which is one of the easiest mural techniques. To antique a wall, mix your desired color (usually siena or umber to create an aged look) with an acrylic glazing medium, using the ratio of 4 to 5 parts glaze to
1 part paint. Brush the mixture onto your wall and quickly - while the paint is still wet - run a clean rag or cheesecloth over the paint to spread it around. For an added effect, you can use this technique to add even darker color to the corners and edges of the wall.
 Glazing - To create acrylic glazes on a wall, mix the acrylic paint with an acrylic medium Golden Glazing Liquid. This will thin and "stretch" the paint, making it more translucent. When you paint a glaze on the wall, the color underneath will show through. This is a handy mural technique for adding dimension and shading to your mural.
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http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Who_are_some_famous_muralists http://www.art-is-fun.com/mural-techniques.html
http://mx.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090615135658AApzg8o http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mural
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