ZANESVILLE − Those passing by Florafino’s Flowers & Gifts on Maple Avenue will now see an eye-catching piece of art instead of a blank wall.
Zanesville native and local artist Raymond Ramos recently finished a flower mural on the flower shop. He used chalk and a piece of bamboo to trace the initial design, then a combination of Ironlak spray paint and Sherwin Williams SuperPaint to complete the project.
“It has almost a rubbery texture and also has some clear in it too. And then when I’m done, I’ll seal everything,” Ramos noted. “It’ll look good when it’s done,” he stated.
The process remained fluid for Ramos, who was scaling the mural as he went along. “Perspective-wise, it changes,” he stated.
Ramos is a construction worker throughout the day, but he occasionally moonlights as a muralist. “Just a hobby,” he stated. He’s also known for his painting across from Main Street’s Downtown Exchange.
Florafino’s owners Shane and Jessica Tysinger have worked with Ramos in the past.
“We were the previous owners of Power Portraits,” Jessica said. “He painted a wall for us in our senior studio. He (did) an absolutely amazing job. So I contacted him in the spring to see if he would like to take on this job.”
Jessica had given Ramos three or four inspirational photos, and he handled the rest. “Told him we were looking for something fun and bright and just to bring a whole new look to Florafino’s,” she added.
“Our intentions are to give the community a reason to smile when they pass our store, just as if they received one of our arrangements.”
The Tysingers have owned Florafino’s for more than two years. In that time, they’ve doubled or tripled their gift item inventory, Jessica noted.
“We’ve been working really hard the last two years to increase the gift line,” Jessica explained.
Shawn Digity is a reporter for the Times Recorder. He can be reached at sdigity@gannett.com.