Eight Great Children's Mural Painters

With a Fine Arts degree from Pittsburgh's Carnegie Mellon University, plus a subsequent business degree and a professional background in museum administration, Holly Johnson has combined her talents to create Cheeky Monkey Murals, a Boston-based murals company specializing in children's rooms. Her style is fresh and illustrative, using vibrant colors and a touch of whimsy—lots of animal scenes (safari, circus and storybook characters) as well as sports themes (go Red Sox!) Holly's design process starts with a home visit and consultation to discuss ideas and budget, followed by several sketches and a final proposal. She charges a daily rate of $600 with small fees for design time, supplies and travel; most of her clients live in the Boston area. Holly launched the company in 2003 when her first son was born, so has first-hand knowledge of what children—and parents—want.

Artist and decorative painter Dawn Papandrea-Khan takes so many things into consideration when planning children's murals—colors, room lighting, furniture and accessories, adjoining rooms, style, taste and budget—it's no surprise she considers herself a perfectionist. A former elementary art and decorative painting teacher, and the mother of two young children, Dawn launched the company in 2001 and works mainly in the tri-state area of NY. She does all the work herself from start to finish, covering every detail from paint type to faux finishes. Prices vary from mural to mural, ranging from $500 to $5,000 and more. Themes cover fairytales, nursery rhymes, animals, marine life, boats and flowers, among many others, and you can work with her to dream up a personalized creation.

There's a charming imaginative quality to the murals created by Russian-born artist Inna Razumova that will appeal to children of all ages, as well as parents who want to revisit their childhoods. Featuring a colorful collection of fairies, birds, animals, flowers, castles and landscapes, Inna's beautiful designs are a combination of painting, drawing and animation that are at once captivating and calming—perfect for keeping the little ones inspired. A Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting from UCLA, with years of experience in graphic design, Inna offers two types of murals—low and high details—and rates vary depending on the size and complexity of the design. She has painted many homes in the US, Europe and her native Russia, and works out of the Bay Area in San Francisco.

Like so many entrepreneurial artists, Amy K. Tubbs painted her first mural for a friend in 1999 and created a business from it. Based near Washington, D.C., Amy offers a range of services from custom painted furniture to faux finishes and decorative painting, but her baby and children's murals are an absolute delight. Armed with an art degree from the University of Mary Washington in Virginia, and inspired by the intense colors of Henri Matisse, Amy paints everything from ballerinas to pirate chests, jungle scenes and farmyard animals. In addition to writing and illustrating her own children's book, she also makes a point to give back by donating her services to schools and non-profit organizations and volunteering as chairwoman of a youth camping program. Now that's art with a heart!

Husband-and-wife team Scott Bullock and Ronit Mitchell barely need to advertise their fine decorative painting company; Penumbra's gallery of work and clients includes one of Chicago's largest murals at the famous East Bank Club, as well as the Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum, Marshall Fields and the Good Samaritan Hospital, each a living billboard for their exquisite artwork. The company specializes in trompe l'oeil, faux finishes, stenciling, gilding, painted furniture and restoration, but their children's murals are simply stunning: Warhol-inspired portraits, Dr. Seuss characters, dinosaurs, fairies and full-room panoramas of Africa's Serengeti are among the many options. Rates are dependent on size, materials and intricacy, and the initial consultation is complimentary.

Rousseau-inspired jungle scenes, Disney cartoon characters, pirate ships, and portraits of your children and pets—no matter the theme or style, Australian artist Di Devine can make your vision come true. A graduate of Sydney's highly regarded Julian Ashton School of Art, Di launched Devine by Design in 2005 and has traveled extensively painting murals in private homes and royal palaces from the Middle East to Asia, notably a series of ceiling murals for the Sultan of Brunei. She can transform any room or space in or out of the home—bedroom, playroom, pool or spa area—using an array of techniques from simple sketches to complex trompe l'oeils.

Animator, illustrator, cartoonist, caricaturist, muralist … British-born Ric Machin has so many strings to his bow (or rather bristles to his paintbrush) it's probably best just to call him a renaissance artist of sorts. Born in Scotland, and a graduate of the Buckinghamshire College of Art and Design, Ric has worked on animating TV commercials, music videos (Elvis Costello and Madonna), and major feature films for Walt Disney and Warner Bros., including Batman and Aeon Flux, in the UK, US, South Korea, Japan and Taiwan, but his first love is painting children's murals. Based in Surrey, Ric brings all his animation skills to his designs, creating or faithfully reproducing any style, character or scene on a wall to dramatic effect. His highly stylized caricature works look almost kinetic, jumping off the wall. Rates are £250 a day, plus expenses, and worth every penny.

There's an old-world charm to Anna Smith's gorgeous designs—peacocks strutting in an idyllic garden, a row of colorful beach huts, and mermaids swimming under the sea—that will have instant appeal to children (or adults) who love to daydream. A Fine Arts graduate of the University of Wales with an ever-growing portfolio of high-profile work and clients, among them Take That's Mark Owen, pro-golfer Michael Campbell and the Children's Hospital Brighton, Anna and her London-based Muraldesign team can customize interior and exterior murals to any style. Her trompe l'oeils, such as a bookcase lined with toys or a window opening to a garden, are truly lifelike.