Portrait of an Artist: Lucinda Henry of Shakti Space Designs

Artisan: Lucinda Henry

For today’s profile, we leave Trumbull, CT and fly west across the country to snowy Portland, Oregon. Here, we encounter Lucinda Henry of Shakti Space Designs who quickly leads us inside her warm studio.

Lucinda established Shakti Space Designs in 2003 and serves the Oregon and SW Washington areas. Her motto suggests “We set the scenes where MEMORIES are made” and her company offers unique paint and plaster finishes for residential and commercial clientele – from simple wall glazes to detailed fine art trompe l’oeil murals. So, where did the name Shakti come from? Lucinda laughs, I am asked a lot what Shakti (pronounced SHOCK-TI) means.? (I get a lot of people that say shitake). Shakti represents the source for energy, power and creativity to ultimately restore balance.? After 15 years of working in the stressful, high-tech industry, balance was necessary for me.? Shakti resonated and aligned appropriately with my name Lucinda which means “bringer of light”.? Here are some pics of her artistry…

Lucinda, you and I met online and we have hit it off because we have so much in common. You follow designers like I do. Tell me about your faves.
I’m a big fan of David Hicks, Dorothy Draper, Parish-Hadley, Tony Duquette, Barbara Barry, Charles & Ray Eames, Carlo Mollino.? I could go on and on.

Oh, I love Mr. Hadley and his red doors and Barbara Barry with the circle designs. They jumpstarted a new way of thinking. How do you go about starting a new commission with fresh ideas?
That is a great question and I have to say that it changes with each client.? The most important aspect of each new commission starts with the initial client call.? Listening 70% of the time and asking questions 30% of the time.? I take queues from the client.? I listen to descriptive words they use when they are talking about their project goals.? Also, they may see one of my sample boards and react so positively I know that’s the direction I will take.? Or, we will peruse my idea file. I’ve known what to bring because I asked several questions during our first call and they will respond positively to pictures of a designed room.? With successful commissions you may hear the client say, It’s better than I could ever have imagined.? That’s when I say, my work here is done.

How exactly did you start this career path? You mentioned that you were in the high-tech industry?
As a young girl I aspired to be an artist like my older brother.? It wasn’t until my senior year in high school that I really started to think about a career in the arts.? My parents had such great fear that by studying art and trying to make a living as an artist I might starve, so they pushed for a career in architecture or hoped I would become an illustrator for Hallmark.? After school I went right into the computer industry and stayed for 15 years offering my blood, sweat and tears as a marketing manager.? I thought I was doing what I wanted to do.? I was successful and independent, but I was so unhappy.? Then I hit the wall and started entertaining the idea of owning my own business.? I wrote down the goal and voiced it to another person who happened to be a financial advisor, and five years later I took the big risk and started my decorative painting business.? It’s been almost six years and I don’t regret a moment of it.? It’been challenging, stressful, sometimes scary, but so rewarding.? I love what I do.

I also left another industry so I know how tough it must have been. Did you look around our industry and gain inspiration from some of the artisans?
I should say all of the most-respected and talented inspired me, each one in a different way.? However, I don’t think it’s any secret: I think Pierre Finkelstein is a Rock Star!? If you’re going to make me name a few, then I have to add Pascal Amblard, William Cochran, Andre Martinez, Jennifer Carrasco, Melanie Royals, Sean Crosby, and I hope she reads this: Andrea Tober.? I took a brief class from Andrea three years ago and I must say she was just a gem to me.? I was a total mess in her class and her compassion and patience really did shine.

What are some?of the misconceptions about faux that you encounter to this day?
If I say I’m a decorative painter, the average consumer may not know what that means.? However, if I say the term faux finisher, I usually get the response “Oh, you do sponging and rag rolling.? This tells me that so many consumers don’t know how our industry has evolved.? I’ve also met many interior designers, architects and custom home builders who also don’t realize how we can transform an environment.? We have a huge opportunity to become educators to the markets we serve.

OK, so setting aside the business and coming into the artistry – What are some of your favorite color combinations you’ve used?
I did an allover stenciled board recently that was plum with a deep mocha/bronze.? Our region tends to be a little behind with the color trends so the purples in the 2008 forecast palette are starting to show up in interior designs now.? Purples with a palette of browns is scrumptious to me.

My recent project utilizing?a Wallovers stencil was another favorite.? The palette for the design of the room was inspired by David Hicks: bronze, sand, brown and orange.? Fabulous!? (see pic below)

Are there any interior design or faux industry books that you recommend for us?to read?
Parish-Hadley: Sixty Years of American Design
Tony Duquette (Goodman/Wilkinson)
Defining Luxury: The Qualities of Life at Home (Bilhuber)
Michael S. Smith: Houses
Decorative Finishes Inspired by the South of France (Skivington/Royals)
Your Home – A Living Canvas: Create Stunning Faux Finishes & Murals with Paint (Heuser)
Professional Painted Finishes: A Guide to the Art and Business of Decorative Painting (Marx)
The Art of Faux: The Complete Sourcebook of Decorative painted Finishes (Finkelstein)

So, Lucinda, a final question. What do you think is the best thing that has happened to the faux industry in the last five years?
The growth of the industry in professionals, training, tools and products has leapt exponentially since I started my business six years ago.? Part of that I attribute to trade organizations like IDAL and PDPA.? I’m especially excited as a new member of PDPA how it will help evolve into a more knowledgeable professional as the organization begins to set standards and develop certification programs.? PDPA’s Advisory Committee and Board of Directors include some of the most respected and talented professionals in the industry.? They are committed to provide knowledge and resources to challenge all of us to elevate our level of practice and foster our growth.? I can’t wait to see where we are five years from now.

Many thanks to Lucinda for our profile chats. She is an incredible artist and I feel lucky that we were able to profile her company. Please check out her website and her lovely blog (which is how we met initially). She has more wonderful pics and info on both sites. For our next profile, we are travelling to the Centennial State and a city whose main natural attraction is a place called Garden of the Gods. Until next time!

UPDATE!: Lucinda is going to be on a television spot focusing on children’s murals.? It will air on February 3rd.? If you’d like to read more about it, click here. Congrats, Lucinda!