Our Approach

Most fading murals
aren't lost.

Every wall tells us something different.

Substrates vary. Paint systems vary. Climates vary. Exposure history, prior coatings, the age of the work, how it was painted in the first place. Every mural carries its own story, and reading that story is where the work begins.

Before anything touches the wall, we talk. A conversation first, and an assessment shaped to the collection. We read what we see, talk through what's happening, and figure out what's possible. Clients often walk away understanding something they'd wondered about for years, because nobody had ever stood beside them and pointed at it.

The rest of this page is how we think about the work once we're on it. The science behind it, the sequence we follow, and the limits we keep.

The science

Paint is two things. When one fails, the other is usually fine.

Paint is made of pigment and binder. The pigment is the color. The binder is the acrylic medium that holds pigment together and bonds the paint to the wall. UV exposure, moisture, and weathering degrade the binder first. As the binder breaks down, pigment loses its grip on the surface and the color reads as faded. For most murals, the color is still there. The binder, the glue of it all, is what's failing.

Pigment
The color itself
Color-producing particles made of minerals, metals, and organic compounds. For most murals, pigment is the last thing to go, and it's still present long after the binder has started to fail.
Binder
What holds it together
The acrylic polymer that bonds pigment to itself and to the wall. UV exposure and weathering degrade it first, which is why fading shows up before any true pigment loss.
Chalking
What you see when binder fails
As the binder deteriorates, unbound pigment accumulates at the surface as a fine, powdery layer. Color reads dull or washed out. This is binder failure, and it's treatable.
Consolidation
How we bring it back
A microresin consolidant penetrates the paint surface and re-fuses all layers into a reinforced, flexible film. UV protection is reintroduced at the pigment level, and the color returns immediately.

Imagine pigment as metal shavings pressed into a thin layer of adhesive. When the adhesive weakens, the shavings loosen and oxidize. What you see is rust. Clean the oxidation, rebind the shavings, and the metal returns as clear as it was.

Paint anatomy diagram showing initial application, the layer after weathering, and the layer after Anemos treatment
Assessment

Before anything touches the wall, we read it.

An assessment tells us what the mural has been through and what it needs. We look at the paint surface, the substrate, the environmental exposure, and the treatment history. Everything that determines what's possible, and in what order.

The assessment determines the sequence. If the paint is too fragile to clean first, we consolidate first and clean around the stabilization. Nothing is assumed. Every wall gets read on its own terms.

The earlier a mural is assessed, the more options remain. Surface conditions that are easy to address at year three can become significantly more complex by year seven. Earlier is always more forgiving.

Before any treatment begins, we also make sure the original artist is notified. It's a professional courtesy and a trust signal to the community that the work is being cared for, not altered.

What we look for
Prior coating type (wax, acrylic, urethane, polyurethane)
Surface adhesion and microfracture mapping
Bubbling, delamination, and substrate separation
Water damage and moisture intrusion history
Surface oxidation and UV exposure level
Substrate condition (concrete, CMU, stucco, wood)
Treatment

Three steps. Each one sets up the next.

The sequence is designed so each step creates the conditions for the one that follows. Cleaning prepares the surface for consolidation. Consolidation builds the foundation for protection. The order matters, and so does knowing when to adjust it.

01
Cleaning
Surface preparation

A biodegradable plant-based wash removes environmental buildup, grime, and incompatible prior coatings. On coated murals, this step also removes the old coating so the consolidant can reach the paint below. On new or uncoated murals, cleaning may be as simple as a light rinse to remove debris.

Without clean contact, consolidation cannot do its job. A clean surface is what makes step two possible.

What this looks like
The mural comes out of hiding.
Grime, biological growth, and old topcoats lift away. What was there all along starts to show up again. No original paint is ever removed.
02
Consolidation
Re-fusing the paint

A microresin consolidant penetrates all paint layers and re-fuses pigment, binder, and substrate into a reinforced, flexible film. UV protection is reintroduced at the pigment level. The color returns immediately.

Where the paint has lifted or bubbled, consolidation also handles repair. The surface is stabilized and the paint is re-adhered to the wall. A stable surface is what makes the protective coating work. A coating applied over unstable paint only seals in the damage.

What changes
The mural starts holding its own weight again.
Color depth returns. Lifted areas lay back down. The surface that was losing ground is now stable enough to carry long-term protection.
03
Protection
Sealing the surface

With the paint consolidated and stable, a semi-sacrificial protective coating is applied over the surface. It provides anti-graffiti protection, further UV resistance, and a barrier against environmental exposure. The coating is fully reversible, meaning it can be removed without touching the paint beneath.

Over time, the coating can be refreshed without ever disturbing the paint below. That's what makes long-term preservation possible.

Why semi-sacrificial
The coating takes the hit, not the paint.
When the coating wears, it gets removed cleanly and replaced. The mural underneath is never touched. That's the whole reason the cycle works.
The protective cycle

Preservation can be a visit. Or a rhythm.

A single Anemos treatment stands on its own. It meaningfully extends the life of the mural, and for many clients that's the engagement they need. But murals that stay outdoors eventually ask for attention again. The protective coating has a lifespan, and when it reaches it, the coating can be refreshed, removed and reapplied before the mural beneath is ever exposed. The work stays protected. The clock resets.

That refresh can be scheduled as its own engagement when the time comes, or handled automatically through the Mural Maintenance Program. Either way, preservation keeps working.

For clients who'd rather not track any of this themselves, the Mural Maintenance Program handles the whole timeline, including mid-cycle checkups. See the MMP →
Yr 0
Full treatment. Cleaning, consolidation, and protective coating applied. The foundation for everything that follows.
Yr 6
Protective coating refresh. The existing coating is removed, the surface is cleaned, and a new coating is applied. UV protection is renewed. Clock reset.
Yr 12
Full reassessment. Consolidation is re-evaluated and applied as needed. A new coating goes down. The cycle continues indefinitely.
What we don't do

The work stays original. That's the whole point.

Preservation works because it keeps what's already there. The moment we start changing the work, it stops being preservation. These limits are intentional. They're what makes the practice honest.

Scope
We don't repaint
If a mural has deteriorated to the point where repainting is the only option, we say so clearly and refer out. What we never do is repaint over the original work as part of a treatment. That's replacement, not preservation.
Integrity
We don't alter
The original work is what people fell in love with. We protect exactly that. Nothing added, nothing changed, nothing lost. No color touch-ups, no adjustments to the imagery, no changes to the composition. What was painted stays painted.
Referrals
We don't overreach
Some murals are beyond stabilization. Structural failures, severe substrate damage, or conditions requiring traditional conservation. We know what we do. When a mural is outside our scope, we say so and refer to the right partner.

Let's talk about your collection.

Twenty minutes, no commitment. We'll walk through what you've got and figure out what makes sense together.

Schedule 20 Minutes → Or send a note instead →