Beneath the Surface – Columbiametro

Master of Plasters products boast an impressive portfolio and have been incorporated in significant restoration projects such as the Hirshhorn Museum in Washington, D.C., and the Gibbes Museum in Charleston. Lauren attributes the companys success to its authentic, high quality materials as well as the customers who specifically seek them out. These are people who appreciate craft; the artistry, chemistry, and science behind the material; and understand how earthen plaster, hand-applied, changes the experience of a place, Lauren says. The success of Master of Plaster is proof that small-scale manufacturing can be very successful.

She attributes this success to quality control and direct interaction with clients. Lauren values working with customers so that she can educate architects and designers in addition to do-it-yourself amateurs. Plaster is a straightforward process, but understanding the materials is the main challenge, she says.

Clients seek her out for her expertise, and she wears many hats within her familys small business. On any given day, Lauren creates custom colors and mixes sample plasters for clients, explains and gives advice on how to use their materials, prepares plaster presentations for design firms, and develops plans for restoration projects repairing surfaces, from damaged walls to fallen ceiling medallions. A few of her favorite recent projects include developing the colors and wall finishes of The Fat Radish, a farm-to-table restaurant in Savannah, Georgia, and a non-toxic nail spa at The Cigar Factory in Charleston called The Water Room.

Lauren certainly has a vivacious energy about her familys small manufacturing company, but most stirring is her passion for plaster. She demonstrates through her artwork that plaster is a material with possibility. Lauren forages for wild flora and fauna to impress into plaster. She produces a seasonal series of plaster impressions of magnolia flowers. Magnolias bloom only at specific times of the year in the South, which reflects what she says her artwork is all about the cycle of life. The way that natures textures relate to place, element, and time fascinates me, and capturing a specific moment in time by accentuating the textures interests me the most. Delicate impressions of wildflowers and plants at different stages of life illustrate Mother Nature at her most beautiful as an evolving force.

The aspect Lauren likes best about her artwork is that it truly can be returned to the earth and thus continue the cycle. Local Columbia boutique hotel Hotel Trundle sought out Lauren not for plaster walls but rather for a piece of her artwork featuring impressions of local ferns to grace its new lobby. Unique commissions like these motivate Lauren to continue her plaster crusade.

The design world is trending towards plaster, and it comes at a time when sustainability is at the forefront of discussion in business. Lauren expresses great enthusiasm for plaster as a material that meets all the requirements for a sustainable future. Much like the food renaissance that has flooded the grocery store and restaurant scene with high quality, organic food, so, too, are artists, architects, designers, urban planners, and homeowners asking questions about health and sustainability for our built environment.

Sustainability is not about instant gratification; rather, it is about effort a little more attention to detail, a little more elbow grease, to create healthier and longer-lasting buildings. The famous architect Antoni Gaudi, a noted favorite of Laurens, once stated, Nothing is art if it does not come from nature.

Laurens work, in all aspects, speaks to this belief most beautifully; she is one of the many artists and designers promoting the great efforts of countless visionaries before her who celebrated nature in all her glory and who fought for her preservation.

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Beneath the Surface - Columbiametro