Love is the inspiration behind the quirky murals seen on the side of Cultivar Coffee, Davis Street Espresso, Trinity Strand Trail, and more recently the Plaza of the Americas rooftop.

“Inspiration just appears — it’s a force that exists all along.”
Kyle Steed

The hand-painted murals belong to Kyle Steed, a self-taught artist and designer.

“Inspiration just appears — it’s a force that exists all along,” Steed told the Dallas Morning News. “Even when I’m pushing through and don’t feel like doing a project, if I simply start, inspiration hits.”

Steed also created a two-piece series of “Little Love Notes” which is available on his blog and has been commissioned to create a three-piece series for the Dallas Festival of Ideas, according to the Morning News. The series is intended to spread inspiration and love to others. The notes will be screen-printed on site as a series or individually for free in partnership with Oil and Cotton, a creative commons in Oak Cliff. The notes will be available for free to festival attendees. The Festival of Ideas is April 29 at Dallas City Hall and Plaza and the J. Erik Jonsson Library in downtown Dallas. 

Steed’s studio is housed in his Oak Cliff home, which he shares with his wife and two daughters. He creates art out of virtually anything — and has the 150,000 Instagram followers to prove it. 

Some of Steed’s pieces include hand-painted murals, signage with hand-drawn typography, custom prints, logo designs, and illustrations for companies all over the world. 

“It’s getting in touch with that childlike wonder,” Steed told the Morning News. “I take myself really seriously, but with my work, I’m always trying to be more playful and fun. As a kid, I would get lost in a drawing and it was always a fun space.”

Check out more of Steed’s work here. 

Kyle Steed works on a mural [Photo Courtesy Kyle Steed]

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