Fair Winds and Following Seas

This collage was a personal gift given to my battalion commander immediately upon his relief of command.  In the summer of 2015, LtCol Sanders supported my efforts to be screened by the NMMC and function under my delegation as a combat artist.  As a personal thank you, this piece was done.  He joked that I never really did artwork, and 2 days before this was presented to him he claimed that he was going to leave the unit without me ever having done any artwork for him/the unit.  Little did he know that his piece being matted and framed at that time.  Needless to say he loved the artwork. 

LtCol T. B. Sanders
CLB-22 Commanding Officer
December 2014 - June 2017

CLB-22 Mural

Rough layout to get the outline and proportions down.  I just used a black Sharpie marker that I would later paint over. 

This mural was completed during my last weeks with the unit.  It was roughly 4' x 4' and turned out better than I expected considering it was my first mural.  The picture doesn't do it justice, the detail in the whole thing was my favorite part.  If you're ever near CLB-22 HQ, you should check it out for yourself!

The second mural with the outline put down and the "darkest darks" established.  I slowly paint in the grays and then whites to render the silver of the USMC emblem.  It took a while for the painting to give me any promising feedback.  It wasn't until the end when the details where going on that I convinced it looked good.

At the end of the day, I was very pleased with the size, detail, and overall result of both murals.  The learning process in painting priority, planning the layout and approach, and appreciation for time to do such a large work truly made the whole experience noteworthy.  This was very rewarding, and I thank the leadership of the battalion who let me contribute to the unit in such a unique way.  May it bring motivation and inspiration for years to come.