Painting the Town

Story by Kate Hofstetter • Photography by Ray Reynolds         

                Lisa Floyd has “painted” her way across the country. In 1979, at the tender age of 15, she started painting Christmas scenes in store windows in the San Francisco Bay area. That led to other jobs, including painting a McDonald’s restaurant.

                Today, Lisa paints signs on the windows of McDonald’s and Wendy’s all over the Southeastern United States. She’s painted the windows of every McDonald’s in the Roanoke market at least once and three times for the franchises in Richmond.

                Ten years ago, husband Dale decided to swich careers, Lisa said. He just couldn’t take working in construction any longer and the two created a family business.

                “We just moved the apostrophe in Floyd’s ArtWORKS to the other side of the ‘s,’” Lisa laughed. “Then, about six years ago, we included the kids.”

                Since the family has jobs up and down the East Coast, that means home schooling for Julia, 16, and Jesse, soon to be 14.

                “They are ‘road’ scholars,” Lisa said of her bright, friendly children. Like Mom, Julia is an artist. Jesse, like Dad, does the prep painting for their projects. Or, as Lisa puts it, “They’re painters, we’re artists.” It’s a description the guys don’t seem to mind.

                One of the Floyds’ first mural jobs at Smith Mountain Lake was Dairy Queen at Westlake Corner. It’s a landscape scene of the Lake area with clouds painted in the shape of products sold at the restaurant. From there, the family moved on to ShopRite for a landscape that stretches from the Peaks of Otter to the SML Dam. They also freshened up a 10-by-15-foot exterior mural for Fallon’s Restaurant and added a replica of the restaurant to the scene.

                Most recently, Joe’s Pizza and Italian Restaurant commissioned the Floyds to “spice up” the restaurant, which was under construction at the time. One of their biggest jobs, the project took 14 days to complete. It’s worth the trip to Joe’s just to enjoy the artwork and see Tuscan faux painting at its best. Lisa did the architecture while Julia handled most of the detail. Julia also painted copies of the owners’ real antique plates from Italy on a shelf that isn’t really there. The technique is called “Trompe l’oeil,” French for “to fool the eye.” What is one dimensional looks three dimensional. You’d swear certain doors are recessed or that there really is a shelf on the wall. Then there are the 32 painted columns that Lisa painted to truly give the feeling of being on a veranda, looking out at the sea and picturesque Italian villages.

                Julia also created a grape arbor (now partially hidden by the soda machine) and designed a Greek fountain in one garden scene with the Sicilian coast as a backdrop. She is also responsible for the menu cover, which is a duplicate of a small section of the grape arbor.

                After you’ve been to Joe’s, head across the street to New York Pizza to see the Floyds’ rendition of the New York skyline, incluiding the Statue of Liberty. The family has also done a mural for the Bedford Chamber of Commerce, which includes 50 points of interest in the surrounding area. Another project is the recently completed lower level of the Ronald McDonald House in Roanoke, where the family turned the stark white walls into the Roanoke skyline.

                With the encouragement of Joe Altadonna, owner of Joe’s Pizza, the Floyds have decided to put down roots here at the Lake. They are opening a studio and art gallery in Joe’s old restaurant and will offer their own original art and prints for sale as well as those from a variety of other artists.

Although most of their work is commercial, the Floyds also do some residential jobs. To reach Floyds’ ArtWORKS, call 540.296.0552 or visit their studio next to Joe’s Pizza and Italian Restaurant at Westlake Corner.