Natalie Clare Shugailo, a lifelong Brookfield resident, has developed a distinctive artistic style that transforms ordinary Chicago walls into portals of ethereal beauty. Her surreal, mystical murals feature fantastical creatures rendered through a unique spray can technique that creates translucent, layered effects resembling paper cutouts or sculptures.
Shugailo's artwork can be spotted throughout Chicago's Near West Side and West Town neighborhoods. At 2500 W. Polk Street, bubbly, ethereal turquoise wolves with glowing gold eyes peer out from a garage wall. Along the railroad embankment on Hubbard Street in West Town, a buffalo-like creature with a teal translucent head and wavy purple horns appears to float mysteriously within its panel. Under a viaduct at West Chicago Avenue and North Lessing Street, Shugailo created a deeply personal self-portrait where one green eye and wavy pink hair peek out from behind her cat, illustrated in shades of black, glowing aqua green, and deep purple.
The artist's signature technique, called a "flare," was learned from street graffiti artists and involves angling the spray can to dust the wall with layers of transparency. "When I learned it, I overdid it like crazy," Shugailo explains. "But it's so fun. You angle the can and sort of dust the wall." She begins each mural by painting images in solid colors, then applies multiple flare layers until achieving her desired ethereal effect. "It's very meditative and free flowing, and I lose myself in it," she describes.
Shugailo's bold color palette reflects her attraction to bright, happy elements that create what she calls a "dreamy reality." The brilliant hues combined with her flare technique draw smiles and bring joy to passersby. "My work looks like paper cutouts, like a paper sculpture or something," she says. "I layer all these transparencies, and it's become my signature. Not many people do it. It was always important to me to stand out and have a unique style."
Sara Dulkin, owner of Chicago Truborn gallery at 1741 W. Chicago Avenue in West Town, has showcased Shugailo's work for more than a decade and considers her one of Chicago's top female street artists. "She has a style that's very specific and unique to her. It's very easy to spot her work," Dulkin notes. "She includes a lot of fantastical creatures that she's made up herself." One mural covering Truborn's exterior wall reflects Shugailo's Ukrainian heritage, painted around the time Russia invaded Ukraine.
The self-portrait featuring her cat holds special significance for Shugailo, representing calmness and the meaning of home. Her artistic calling emerged early in life and has remained constant. "Since I was 8 years old, I said, 'I'm going to grow up and be an artist,'" she reflects. "You're not sure about a lot of things in life, but it's always been a surety for me."
