Featured Slideshow
The Betsy. Curvaceous, bold and graphic, this fabulous Victorian couch has gone from sad and unwanted to " yeah baby" take me home in all its fabulousness. Betsy has a one of a kind hand painted upholstery print, in citron, navy, golden yellow, red, black and lavender. Trimmed with traditional black gimp and 1/8 self piping. Besty has been refinished in semi gloss white lacquer and rubbed to give a distressed finish in places.
African Inspiration. Bold ethnic print in black, shimmering bronze and terracotta - it's graphic and animal print inspired as well. Finished with a 1/4 solid welt.
Alabaster Rouge. The chair is in the style of Louis XIV French antique with glazed finish on the woodwork. The cushion is down and the interior upholstery is horsehair - all original to the piece. The fabric is a Silk Hemp blend, hand painted with a Trellis and Chrysanthemum print in Terracotta, black and Burnished Gold. Finished with traditional gimp trim.
Anisette Armchair. This one-of-a-kind armchair has been revitalized with a semi gloss lacquer finish, a fabulous hand painted block print in grey, navy, lime, green-bronze and cranberry color blocks, and self trim with covered nail heads.
Delectable Duo. Reclaimed from certain death by neglect, this pair of delightful occasional chairs has been given new life, a glossy lacquer finish, a wonderful abstract one-of-a kind hand painted print in grey, black, bronze and gold, a novel trim of self binding and covered nail heads. New bronze casters adorn their delicate legs.
Floribunda. Graceful armchair with wicker insets finished with glossy red lacquer, and a daring colorful graphic floral hand painted fabric in "Take me to Florida” colors of orange, lime, turquoise, yellow navy cerise and black.
Mod Mischief. This wonderful mod pair 1960's style chairs with wicker backs have a new coat of black semi gloss lacquer paint and a colorful graphic print in black - turquoise, cerise pink, hot mustard and navy.
Oriental Jam. This lovely example of an East Lake chair has been rejuvenated by a fresh coat of glossy red lacquer and rubbed to give a distressed look in places. Hand painted in blacks and greys in a graphic block and leaf print. Trimmed with traditional black gimp. Original bronze casters
Rock on Rocker. As the name implies, this is a rocking rocker. Finished in glossy red lacquer with an abstract floral one of a kind hand painted print in lime, navy, cerise, lavender and black with black and white 1/8 piping at the base.
Rockstar Armchair. This fabulous armchair has been hand painted with a one of a kind bold print; outlined in black with centers of lavender, lime, tangelo, navy and turquoise and a white background to accent the graphic print. This chair has been re-finished in a glossy black lacquer and rubbed to give it a distressed look in places.
Spencer. Pair of Federal shield back, Mahogany chairs. Professionally restored to their original grandeur. Silk and hemp blend fabric hand painted with a black abstract stripe, accents of metallic Copper, on a base of Deep lime. Finished with a 1/8 self covered piping at the base.
Starstruck Quartet. Take a look at the New FAB 4, these glamorous Victorian lovelies have been refinished with semi gloss lacquer and rubbed in places to give a distressed look. Hand-painted in a eye catching graphic print in black, citron, turquoise and purple.
The Joker. Hand painted with an abstract floral print in citron with black detail, finished with traditional gimp trim, The Joker has a new coat of semi gloss white lacquer, and has been rubbed in places to give a distressed look.
Victor Victoria. This Fabulous Victorian lady has been modernized yet retains her classic look with a poppy circle paint job on the seat and an abstract floral print on the back. Paints are metallic blues, brown and bronze with flat black accent swirls. Finished with 1/8 double welt trim.
Suzanne Meyer Pistorius of BlugirlArt gives new life to old chairs.
Taking inspiration from the chairs’ shape and color, she hand-paints gorgeous fabric for each piece.
BlugirlArt is the fulfillment of artist Suzanne Meyer Pistorius’ dream job. After ten years of working in technical design, she decided it was time to take the plunge and return to her first love – Fabric painting. During the summer of 2008, she created her first collection of recycled chairs. After she spent many hours stripping and sanding it was goodbye manicure! The chairs were then sent to the refinisher for expert repair and paintwork. Some of the chairs she literally rescued from a certain death by termites or simple neglect. When she looks at her collection, she’s thrilled beyond words - her dream has been realized.
The hardest part of her endeavor is creating the artwork for the chairs. The chair, its shape and color are her primary inspirations. She uses four different base cloths, each responding differently to paint. Sometimes Suzanne paints sample ideas and color ways. Other times she stares at the blank fabric for ages, while willing inspiration. And on other occasions, the Betsy sofa for example, she had a very clear idea of what she wanted to design. Depending on the size of the piece, painting the fabric can take up to two days to complete. When she’s painting the fabric, she paints specific sections for each part of the chair – she calls it random-but-placed design.
With the fabric designed, the chairs are then off to be upholstered –she’s very fortunate to have found someone who understands her vision for the finished piece. The end product is cohesive in design but not traditional in upholstery print placement. Once the chairs have been upholstered – she then treats the fabric with a protectant that’s in keeping with her “Green” philosophy. The final result of her labors is wondrous to behold. -- Photography by Dan Minicucci.
BlugirlArt is on the web at www.blugirlart.com
Boston Design Center
One Design Center Place, Suite 329
Boston, MA 02210
Inspirations Gallery
