Murals bring walls to life

Lindsay Sandham

In honor of his 25th anniversary as co-owner and manager of the Best

Western Bay Shores Inn, Bill Pratt invested $250,000 in giving the

place a face-lift, with final touches to be completed today.

The exterior of the hotel, on West Balboa Boulevard in Newport

Beach, was given a fresh coat of paint, and all 25 rooms were

remodeled.

Although all the furnishings and fixtures are new, the most

striking aspect of Pratt’s remodel might be the giant murals of

images by surf artist and photographer John Severson reproduced in

every room.

Pratt bought the rights to reproduce two of Severson’s paintings--

“Surf Park” and “DC II.”

Pratt had the idea to use Severson’s art while thumbing through a

back issue of Surfer’s Journal. There he saw featured a spread of

images by the renowned artist, filmmaker and Surfer magazine founder.

“‘Surf Park’ was the one that just grabbed me and took my breath away

from the start,” Pratt said of the colorful orange and green image of

a Redondo Beach surf park in the ‘50s. The image seemed restful to

him.

Pratt originally contacted Severson last winter and, after months

of going back and forth, they finally came to an agreement. “I just

didn’t know about taking them up that size,” said Severson, who has

yet to see the completed murals. “He [Bill] convinced me ... I’m

really happy this worked out. This is new territory for me.”

Cindy Gay of Image Partners, the company Pratt contracted to make

the wall coverings, said the murals are digitally printed with a

technology called Viewnique, invented by the large wall-covering

manufacturer Om Nova.

“They take any image anybody wants and they’ll digitally reproduce

it [into a wall covering],” she said. “It’s such a great way for

people to really customize the look. What Bill did was he saw some

art work that he likes; he had a vision and we were able to supply

him with the medium to do it.”

Pratt said Image Partners did a fantastic job and it was Gay that

made both he and Severson comfortable with the technology.

Along with the murals, which are illuminated by halogen lights on

a dimmer, Pratt invested in all new decor for the rooms with plush

blue carpets, porcelain tile floors, granite countertops in the

bathroom, blue drapes to match the blue duvet covers, and mounds of

big pillows covering the beds.

“It will look like a Pottery Barn ad,” Pratt said. “I’m into the

detail.”

Each room will also come equipped with a plasma TV, a combo

DVD/VCR and a CD alarm clock with ambient music. Pratt said that

although $250,000 is a lot to spend on 25 rooms, he thinks his

customers deserve it.

“We began to discover that we had a very cool clientele,” Pratt

said of the many young professionals who are repeat customers every

year. “I’ve always looked at it like entertaining; I’m not a

hotelier, I never went to school for it.”

He added that with its prime location right across the street from

the beach in the heart of surf culture, it’s time for Bay Shores Inn

to be representative of that way of life.

“Everything is finally coming together,” he said. “It’s pretty

special.”