Red, pink and gold painted flames exit a studio fireplace, as though fire is lighting the studio ablaze.
 
 

THE END OF SHAME

〰️

THE END OF SHAME 〰️

 
A painted mantel in pastel blues and pinks is part of a larger art installation. On the ledge a blue painted branch mimics the shapes of painted marks on the brick walls.
 
 
Birds eye view of a fireplace from an art installation. Pink and red spray paint pours out of the hearth, while a neon pink eye shape appears on the top of the mantel.
 
 
A painted mantel in pastel blues and pinks is part of a larger art installation. On the mantel a blue painted branch mimics the shapes of painted abstract marks on the walls.
 
 

“I’d been wanting to explore the theme of shame artistically for a while, originally playing with the title, ‘The Story of Shame.’ 
Before starting I simmered on the theme, considering the colour palette and potential imagery I might incorporate or use as a jumping off point. I was reflecting on shame, the choking effect it tends to have and that what it leads to ultimately is isolation and disconnection. Once I hit on isolation as a keyword I had my visual jumping off point. An iceberg became the central story anchor, which felt particularly relevant in an enclosed space, capturing the sense of existing behind a cold shell, frozen in the past, disconnected, hibernating...

An art installation exploring the theme of shame and healing the heart. The inside of a studio is painted to resemble an iceberg, with painted flames exiting the hearth and appearing to melt the ice. Greenery grows through cracks in the brick walls.
 
 
 
 
 

 

Close up painted detail from a mural - splatters of pastel pink and blue paint cover the wood paneled walls.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Artist Camille Javal wears paint covered overalls inside her immersive mural installation The End of Shame.
 
Mural artist Camille Javal inside her immersive art installation. She wears paint splattered overalls and stands in front of a gold and pink spray painted fireplace.
 
 
 

“Initially, when I started painting I restricted myself mostly to a blue colour palette in order to create a cold atmosphere, with darker shades on the ground to suggest deep water and lighter colours on the walls for the iceberg. Two things ended up dramatically changing the story and lead to what is now the final title and sentiment of the installation, ‘The End of Shame.’

The first was the fireplace.

Instinctively I painted a light pink mist coming out of it. As the installation gradually evolved and I dropped into my body more, the fire got warmer, brighter and became the centrepiece. Fire figuratively and literally warmed up the space… ‘melting’ or transforming the original frozen narrative of shame, into one of freedom from the past. The fire helped direct the movement and direction for the rest of my marks.

This creative experience also affirmed that sometimes the story unfolds only one chapter at a time.

 
An art installation exploring the theme of shame and healing the heart. The inside of a studio is painted to resemble an iceberg, with painted fire exiting the hearth and appearing to melt the ice. The studio door shines with metallic spray paint.
 
The inside of a studio is painted with abstract marks. Colourful designs frame a window and cover the walls, beams, window blind and light fixture. The studio door shines with metallic spray paint.
 
The inside of an immersive art installation, where the walls, window, blind, beams, ceiling and light fixture are painted in pastel pink and blue marks. Through the window greenery and sunlight can be seen, in contrast to the painted surreal studio.
Camille Javal stands inside her immersive mural, The End of Shame, which uses colour and painting as a tool for healing.
 
Painted fabric draped over a beam forms part of an immersive art installation. The walls, beams and ceiling have been painted in abstract marks, matching the design on the material.
 
 
Painted fabric, draped over a beam and hanging down, forms a cross inside an immersive art installation. The walls, beams, window and ceiling have been painted in abstract marks, matching the design on the material.
 
 
Painted fabric mimics the movement of a hurricane, seeming to spin inside an art studio. The colours of the backdrop match the colors and designs of the fabric.
 
 
Painted fabric mimics the shape of a piece of ice, echoing the theme of the painted iceberg backdrop behind it.
 
 
 

“I played with the concept of a dividing ‘curtain’, using fabric that felt transparent and lightweight enough that the light could get through. The curtain explored division between parts of our inner world and, over time, also came to represent transitioning into being less censored. With lighter, less rigid walls between inner parts… and boundaries that can be moved or abandoned.

 
An immersive art installation exploring the theme of shame. Here a painted curtain in colors matching the walls forms a thin veil - similiar to a dissociative split or fragmentation of the psyche.
An immersive art installation exploring the theme of shame. Here a painted curtain in colors matching the walls forms a thin veil - similiar to a dissociative split or fragmentation of the psyche.
 
 
A chlld's plastic toy house is painted in blue and metallic paint and styled on a mantel in similiar colors, causing the object to blur with it's background.
 
 
 
 
 
The gold outline of a grieving female figure is seen on a painted brick wall. In front a painted fabric curtain creates a sense of separation between aspects of the psyche.
 
 
 
 
 
 
The inside of an immersive art installation, where the walls, window, blind, beams and ceiling are painted in pastel pink and blue marks. A blue painted branch styled on a beam resembles a tree root, echoing similiar designs on the walls.
 
 
Painted walls, ceiling and beams from an immersive art installation. The abstract marks on the ceiling resemble angel wings.
 
 
 
 

“The second thing that altered how I painted in the space and thought about the overall design was greenery growing through some of the cracks in the studio. I liked that Existence was creeping back in and couldn’t be held back or permanently disconnected from… so there was the introduction of wildness and renewal. This reflected in how I painted - a little more wildly and with less bodily restriction.

 
Greenery from outside contrasts with the painted interior, children's hands reach playfully through a cutout in the wood paneled wall, connecting with the surreal world.
 
 
Two giggling girls try to run away as another child's arm reaches through a cutout in a painted art installation to grab them.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Detail close up of an artistically painted window in navy, blue and pops of other colors, part of an abstract art installation.
 
 
Close up detail of artistically painted beams, set within an abstract art installation.
 
 
Artistically painted beams in navy, blue and pops of other colors, part of an abstract art installation.
Close up of the floor from above, rainbow splatters of paint resemble confetti against blue painted floorboards. Red flames on the top right of the image move across the floor towards the open door.
Confetti-like splatters of rainbow paint appear against a navy wooden floor. A painted light blue branch at the top of the image is like a tree root near a riverbed.
 
 
 
 
 
An art installation exploring the theme of healing the heart. The inside of a studio is painted with flames exiting the hearth. Coloured branches create 3D elements, seeming to grow through the bricks to enter the surreal world.
An art installation exploring the theme of shame and healing the heart. The inside of a studio is painted to resemble an iceberg, with painted flames exiting the hearth and appearing to melt the ice. Greenery grows through cracks in the brick walls.
 

Click here for PART 1 of The End of Shame…