By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post

After a long spring spent prepping the west wall of Professor’s, a landscape is slowly starting to emerge.

Artist Jason Lamb volunteered to paint an exterior mural on the length on the Professor’s Classic Sandwich Shop & More building at 521 E. 11th in Hays.

Lamb, who moved to Hays less than a year ago and lives across the street from Professor’s, has little formal training as an artist.

His father, grandfather and great-grandfather were all painters, and his father made a living as a house painter, a trade his dad passed on to Jason.

“I kind of have paint in my blood,” Lamb said.

Lamb, 43, has dabbled in various media, including oil, watercolor, graphite and sculpture. He also tattooed professionally for eight years before moving to Hays.

“My favorite work to do, where it is not so technical, which is most free to work on is impressionistic,” he said. “I love to paint impressionistically … kind of like my own take on Van Gogh. I love Van Gogh, and I love Monet.”

Although he enjoys using nature as as a theme in his impressionistic work, he also creates works of fantasy, which tend to have a more realistic style.

He has painted interior murals before, but nothing as large as the Professor’s project.

The painting is going to be a impressionistic landscape with sunflowers, trees, dragonflies, butterflies, and of course bees and mushrooms as a nod to Professor’s, which sells honey and mushrooms that are grown in the building’s basement.

As light changes throughout the day, the mural will appear differently. Lamb said he intends to use metallic paints, which should pop more during the afternoon in full sun.

“My goal with this painting is to have it readable at a distance, so when you look at it from far away you get a general feel of the colors and intensity. As you get closer, more surprises appear,” he said, “So there are little treats the closer you get to the piece of art. People who stop and come see it closely will be able to see things they couldn’t see from far away.”

Lamb said as the mural has taken shape he periodically steps back to appraise his work from different angles.

“This is the first mural where I was given the freedom to do whatever I imagine,” he said. “Amy (Jensen) was very open for me to create a true piece of art out of my ideas, out of my soul. Most murals before this have been commissioned illustrations that I have brought to life that was someone else’s idea.”

He said one the most significant challenges of this project thus far has been the amount of paint required. The exterior wall Lamb is working with is made of a weathered wood. He said  he spent a significant amount of time prepping and sealing the wall before he starting painting the image.

The heat is another factor. Lamb primarily works on the mural in the mornings when it is cooler.

Lamb is nearing completion on the background. He said he will start working on the foreground next. He anticipates the mural will be completed in late October. He said he will likely have hundreds of hours in the painting before it is completed.

“Patience — I have to just be patient with myself, because I really don’t like my art until the last couple of days really that I work on it,” he said.

Lamb will be finishing the mural with a UV protectant and anticipates the colors will remain vibrant for up to 10 years.

“My goal for any art is that people for just a tiny moment in their life to be removed from the normal day-to-day problems they have and escape and feel a sense of happiness and joy and beauty,” he said. “If I can get someone just running by or someone driving by … if for just one second they’re happier and they experience artistic beauty in a way I can express it, then my goal has been met.”

Amy Jensen, Professor’s owner, said she hopes the mural will beautify the neighborhood.

“And maybe people will come just to see it,” she said.

Lamb said his next project will be designing his own set of tarot cards in pencil and watercolors. He is self-employed, reads tarot and sells toys at toy shows in addition to his art.

Lamb takes commissions and is interested in doing more murals. You can reach him at 303-532-7068 or by email at [email protected].