Studio Visit | Toni Miraldi
Studio Visit | Toni Miraldi
Jake Puff
Toni Miraldi, Allora, 2020. Coffeehouse Mural, 60” x 96”. Allora Coffee + Bites, Norwalk, CT. Image courtesy of the artist.
It seems as though many artists begin their creative journey and career with a similar hurdle to pass — namely, telling your family you want to become an artist. For whatever reason, a career in the arts is usually unexpected and often unencouraged. Explaining to your parents that you want to be an artist is rarely praised. This was the case for artist Toni Miraldi. Her parents were engineers, but that did not prevent her from doing what she has always wanted to do: create art.
Based in Newtown, Connecticut, Miraldi is a painter and muralist. Since taking a mural painting class in high school, Miraldi has loved the idea of painting large-scale works of art. Throughout college, Miraldi continued to take art classes but graduated with a degree in history from Wheaton College. Miraldi later went back to school at the Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts to pursue a new career where her interest in painting grew.
After VCU, Miraldi also spent time in the interior design industry gaining an understanding of interior spaces which benefited her when painting murals. Roughly six years ago, the company where Miraldi worked as a graphic designer was sold, giving her the chance to do something new with her career. Miraldi explained, “This gave me an opportunity to pursue a career as an artist, something I have always wanted to do.” For Miraldi, murals were the perfect medium as she could work with clients and would not have to deal with an inventory of paintings or studio space.
Miraldi’s murals use large fields of color with clean lines and shapes. Her background as a graphic designer translates into her mural style: her murals do not have a traditional painterly look. Rather, Miraldi’s murals depict graphic images of landscapes, buildings, and many other everyday items. She also often paints murals for different schools or companies using their mascot or logo.
While she follows other muralists on social media, Miraldi gets her main inspiration from her clients. “My clients have their ideas, and I run with them, pulling designs together along the way to create a painting that best fits their unique space,” she explained. Miraldi works with a wide range of clients and locations, from commercial spaces, residential homes, and public places. Despite the scale of her work, Miraldi prefers to work alone as it gives her more creative freedom. She loves transforming plain and overlooked spaces into bright and colorful works of art.
Toni Miraldi, Migration, 2018. Public Art Mural, 81” x 177”. Historic Downtown Post Office Walk, Danbury, CT. Image courtesy of the artist.
One mural Miraldi particularly enjoyed creating was a public mural in Danbury Connecticut. This piece titled Migration was done across three boarded-up windows on an old brick building that housed an Ecuadorian restaurant. The mural contained a large colorful bird whose wings spanned across the three panels. The colors and overall design were inspired by Ecuadorian patterns, textiles, and ceramics to honor the city's diverse cultural heritage. Miraldi loved everything about this mural, from the color palette and composition to its window location.
Miraldi begins her mural process by sketching out ideas while working within the limits of the client's wall space. Miraldi explains how her process has “an engineering element to it” as she translates her sketches onto the wall, making sure to include every detail. Though she prefers painting with bright colors, she explains her clients have the final say on a color palette. An ultimate goal of hers is to do an even larger scale mural on the side of a building that would require the help of other artists. Miraldi is excited about the idea of a possible future collaboration with a project of this size as it would be a great learning experience for her.
Miraldi explains success as “being creative on your own terms.” The ability to create your own work, schedule, and life means you have creative freedom, something many artists strive for. Miraldi also explains how working with clients keeps her motivated as with each new client and project, she is “pulled back into the creative process.” During the pandemic, her work slowed down, but she was fortunate that her work could be done outside and alone, allowing her to continue to create while the rest of the world was on pause. Miraldi also spent this time catching up on client leads and preparing for future projects.
In the future, Miraldi is unsure where her work will take her. She has spent time thinking about her future art, explaining how changes in mural trends could affect her work. She explained how murals could potentially fall out of favor, leaving her with fewer clients. Miraldi also discussed the work that goes into her murals saying, “I enjoy them, but murals are physically demanding.” Miraldi is open to the idea of working in a studio one day and exploring printmaking, something she has been interested in since her time at graduate school.
Toni Miraldi, Inspiration & Transformation, 2019. Fitness Studio Mural, 81” x 117”. A Wellness Life, Sandy Hook, CT. Image courtesy of the artist.
Jake Puff
Jake Puff is a graphic designer and artist. Born in Massachusetts, Jake currently attends the University of New Haven, where he is expecting to receive a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in graphic design along with a marketing minor, in May of 2023. Jake currently works as a social media content creator for the Art and Design department at the University of New Haven.
