Grisaille  is a term for a painting executed entirely in shades of grey or of another neutral greyish colour. A full color painting requires more time and skill than one in monochrome. Grisaille was often chosen as a quicker and cheaper alternative, although it was also chosen quite deliberately for aesthetic reasons, in order to create a specific visual effect.  I love monochromatic rooms and adding the artistry of grisaille does create a fabulous effect.  Fifty Shades of Gray is consistently my most popular post with the best collection of gray interiors.  I have a number of wonderful examples of grisaille if you choose to revisit these posts here are the links:  Fifty Shades of Gray 2016, Fifty Shades of Gray in Classical Interiors 2015, and Fifty Shades of Gray 2013.

I am in the process of designing a brunaille mural.  Paintings executed in brown are referred to as brunaille.  The term brunaille was coined in the early 17th century by the French  to describe pictures painted in shades of brown.

Brunaille Paintings

Here is the Powder Room mosaic tile floor.

The color palette for the brunaille mural will be similar to this lovely mural.

 

Brunaille murals/paintings are less common than paintings executed in grey (grisaille), though more common than those in green (verdaille).

Love this verdaille mural by Jean-Baptiste Pillement.

Grisaille paintings resemble the drawings, normally in monochrome, that artists from the Renaissance on were trained to produce; like drawings they can also betray the hand of a less talented assistant more easily than a fully coloured painting.

Grisaille composition was often modeled to resemble sculpture, either relief or statuary. It is an excellent choice for trompe l’oeil murals.

Beautiful example of brunaille mural.

Gray Scale for grisaille.

Hermitage decorative painting.

Putti holding a swag.

Excellent cartouche.

So beautiful.

Grisaille Paintings and Murals

Love the use of panels for the grisaille artwork.  Beaux-Arts wall panel kits at $200 for a finished panel are a perfect choice for this look.

some of these are wallpaper.

 

Love the touches of color in this mural.  I plan on adding some colorful elements as well.

Love this.  Great use of light.

 

Same mural as above.

 

Cutting Edge Stencils offers the ultimate mural components kit.

de Gournay Wallcovering