Here is how I got into this sign series… In 1990, for one of my art shows, Skylines – Landscapes of the West Bay, at the Coyote Point Museum in San Mateo, I wanted a California Scenic Route sign to grace the entry area of the exhibit. At first, I thought I would take a sign off its pole at a vista point on Highway 280. I had a wrench, but the sign looked so lovely that I could not take it away. I put my wrench down and picked up my sketchbook instead. Then, I painted the sign on a masonite panel in my studio. After the show, this sign hung outside my studio in Redwood City, then on my back gate in Chico. After years in the elements, the sign needed to be replaced, and for the 3rd generation of this sign, we transferred the design and got it printed on metal.

Nicolai Larsen is known for his inventive visionary painted imagery, fine art canvasses, award-winning large scale mural art and architectural painted environments. He has been internationally commissioned to create works for public, corporate and private clients.

He studied art at the San Francisco Art Institute and the Academy of Art College. When faced with earning a living he became a sign painter for a few years. He was selected to work in the CETA Art in Public Places Project in San Mateo County, CA. Later he became a set designer at Marine World/Africa USA.  Enventually he operated his own visual arts company specializing in fine arts, murals, trompe l’oeil and graphic design. He has exhibited his work in many venues including the Peninsula Museum of Art, Diablo Valley Planetarium, Stanford University, UC Berkeley, NASA Aames Research Center and the Vorpal Gallery in San Francisco.