Art is a typical feature in David Hopkins Design homes. Many of our clients are art connoisseurs. For some, the home becomes an art gallery in its own right.
It’s especially rewarding to design the interior around beloved pieces that the homeowners have collected over years of globetrotting. These pieces reflect not only their personality but also their view of the world — and we find special ways for them to display those treasures.
What gets us excited even more is the opportunity to create bespoke elements ourselves.
Both David and Dawn are talented artists. But they don’t add their own art to a client’s home for the sake of doing it. Photographer Mike Penney captured moments during the construction stage, and turned those into breathtaking design features.
Finding inspiration in the moment
The creation of bespoke pieces doesn’t come as a prescribed, preplanned process. Here’s how David describes it:
“I may see something as I visit the construction site — birds flying overhead, a certain way the sunrays create shadows. I never know when a fleeting moment will inspire me. But when I see it, I grab my camera and go shooting.”
One of those captured moments will eventually evolve into an art piece. It could be as simple as transferring a beautiful photo onto an oversized, metallic or acrylic “canvas.”
A spontaneous process
When you look at this piece of art that is displayed in one of our homes, you may think it’s an abstract painting. Would you believe that it’s actually a photo of frozen mud?
It started with one of those spontaneous moments. The frozen ground around the home got David’s attention. Because he knew the clients were open to the idea of custom art, he snapped a few frames — and what you see is the photographic detail after a few artistic effects.
No one would give frozen mud a second look. But David Hopkins sees the world through an artist’s eye. In fact, he dreamed of being an artist, but the practical side of having to support a family led him on the path of designing and building homes instead.
This fortuitous outlet for his passion to create art bodes well with clients. They love the idea because these objects have a personal connection to their home.
The art we create represents their personal history. And it produces an emotional vibe that helps others connect with the space.
Art is certainly a subjective experience. But what we’ve learned is that even the simplest, most mundane things could be turned into a beautiful expression. All you have to do is look at the world around you with a new eye.
