“I have awarded Brenda Councill several important commissions that will inspire on a grand scale. Visitors to these Great Halls of Learning and higher Education facilities will enjoy her work for many generations to come!” –  Irwin Belk,Philanthropist, State Senator,ret., UN Ambassador

“Education is a timeless constant that distinguishes humankind across all cultures and all countries – it has been pursued throughout history and will be pursued as long as we exist,” explains Ms. Councill.  “My objective is to use the communicative language of symbols to open a conversation with viewers about the value, meaning, and inspiration of gaining knowledge.”

Painting on a ceiling is a unique challenge with little room for error.  It requires considerable and careful planning throughout, from multiple advance sketches to difficult and detailed work done atop scaffolding while standing or lying high above the ground.

“The College of Education is a landmark building for our campus and it deserves a distinctive artistic signature that visitors can enjoy today as well as for generations to come,” says Dr. Charles Duke, dean of the Reich College of Education.  “This ceiling mural certainly adds an important and distinctive dimension to the interior environment.”

Dedication of the Core Laboratory Building and Dome -2010

David H. Murdock commissioned the largest painted dome in the southeast to crown the multi billion dollar building within the North Carolina Research Campus.

Martha Stewart climbed 100 feet to meet the artist and exclaimed “Brenda Councill is Michelle-angelo!”

“I selected Brenda Councill and her team after a world wide search. She exceeded my demanding expectations and visitors to my 80,000.sq ft. Core Laboratory building are immediately awestruck and I am very proud.” – David H. Murdock, owner Dole Foods, Inc. Chairman of the Board, CEO, Castle and Cooke, Inc. – commenting on the largest painted dome in the southeast, Kannapolis, NC

The fruits and vegetables theme befits Murdock, who owns Dole Food Co. and whose campus is focusing on health and nutrition. Councill’s “canvas” stretches 22 feet high, and the total painted surface covers 2,511 feet. She is working with Thibault Tosseram, an Atlanta artist originally from Paris.

Councill said her biggest challenge is pleasing Murdock, a hands-on presence overseeing the work he commissioned.

He didn’t want pictures of sliced fruit. They needed to look like how people would buy them in the market. Murdock also insisted on fruits and vegetables that would be studied by campus scientists. And he approved the final design, which was by architect Arnold Savrann with Murdock’s development company, Castle and Cooke.  Lynne Scott Safrit, the campus project manager, said Murdock wanted the mural to reflect his belief that fruits and vegetables can change people’s lives.

Some of the representations on the mural include a pineapple 23 feet long and blueberries a foot tall, near an 11-foot head of lettuce.  The style is called hyperrealism, in which objects are rendered in a very lifelike, realistic fashion. The perspective had to be changed on some of the drawings, however, to account for the contours in the dome. It’s an optical illusion that will be corrected in the mind’s eye when people look at the mural, Councill said.

See on the Oprah Winfrey Show, 2009

Wit and Wisdom Gallery Talk- Sponsored by The Hickory Museum of Art

The evening opens with refreshments and time of networking/socializing. Then enjoy a program by muralist Brenda Councill, who will discuss her current exhibition, A Mural in the Making, and being a woman artist. Presented by the Women’s Resource Center.

Campbell Cottage Murals: “Images that Inspire”

Scripture: Philippians 4:8 “Finally brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things.” (NIV)

Campbell Cottage is our secure facility housing the children who are dealing with the most severe behavioral consequences of the abuse they have suffered. The children are in the cottage or its attached secured outside recreation area 24/7. A donors, Norma Suddreth, commissioned nationally recognized mural artist Brenda Councill to do two murals in each of the two side dormers in the main room of Campbell Cottage. The beautiful murals are intended “to generate spiritual thought and inspire hope, redemption and healing for children and young adults.” The artist looks at her creations a visual “parables” that tell a story of faith in visual symbols and a few key biblical verses or words of historical value to the Christian faith. The murals were created on flat canvas attached to the wall and the three-dimensional look was created by a technique called trompe l’oeil (fool the eye). Several devotionals will focus on the meaning of the symbols in these paintings.

The murals succeeded in their intent. The children who have lived in the cottage have indeed found them inspirational, thought provoking, encouraging, and calming in times of stress. The images were powerful and meaningful enough to residents at the Cottage in 2011 that the kids asked Norma, who also comes periodically to do special art projects with the kids, if she could invite the artist to come and talk to them about what she had created. Brenda Councill kindly accepted the invitation and spent 90 minutes talking to the kids about the murals in Campbell as well as sharing photos of some of her other work. The gift of these beautiful images has provided a nurturing and healing visual setting for these children to heal.
Many times, in our own homes we surround ourselves with images of what is important to us. Photographs of our family members who live far away or who have died bring back happy memories. Photos or paintings of places we have been remind us of past blessings. Things we find beautiful refresh the spirit. Images of nature remind us of the beauty of God’s creation. The symbols around us in our churches [in windows, or paintings, or banners] remind us of aspects of our faith and help us to focus on and feel closer to God. Surrounding ourselves with these things helps us to think about some of those “good things” that Paul is talking about in today’s scripture.

Prayer: Dear Lord, we thank you for the gift of art that enriches our lives and nurtures our spirits. Help us, through this gift, to think about you and bring us into a closer relationship with you. Amen.

Brenda Councill grew up in jacksonville, Florida and has donated many of her early drawings to the permanent collection of the Mandarin Museum and the City of Jacksonville. She has been active in the Historical Society for more than 30 years and her drawings, paintings and prints capture the legacy of Harriet Beecher Stowe and the early settlers to Mandarin, Florida.

For more information: http://www.mandarinmuseum.net/