Crazy Horse Painting
North Carolina
Crazy Horse Painting in Waxhaw, North Carolina, is owned by Joann Bortles, who has been painting for over 28 years. She started in 1979 when she got her hands on an old gas tank to paint. From there, custom paint jobs came easy for this art school grad who attended NYC's Parson's School of Design. Joann may have started out on small motorcycle parts, but she can handle trucks, boats, bikes, and anything she can fit into her spray booth.
"I love painting flames!" Joann said. "I could paint flames all day long and love every minute of it. It might seem like flame painting would get boring, but there are so many different styles of flames and so many color combinations, the flame choices are infinite. It's challenging and exciting to try new techniques and effects. Like this tank, I wanted to do one of my favorite styles of flames: airbrushed flames. I used a teal green as one of the flame colors, and it gave it an edgy, different look. For me, painting flames could never be boring. There's nothing like getting that perfect layout of flames on a part, then standing back after the job is done and knowing the colors and design are working together effectively. For me, it is just as much a work of art as something that hangs on the wall of an art gallery." Joann has also written a few books, like How to Paint Your Motorcycle and How to Custom Paint Your Car. As she puts it, there are still plenty of flame jobs that need to get laid down on people's sheetmetal.
For more information, contact Crazy Horse Painting at (704) 843-3780, and to see more samples of her work visit www.crazyhorsepainting.com