An artist with local ties is adding a three-dimensional mural inside the new DC Sweet Potato Cake bakery at 5105 Baltimore Ave. in Hyattsville, which is scheduled to open May 1.

Marifel Bermudez, who goes by the professional name Marivella, is installing a three-dimensional blooming cherry blossom tree that stretches from roots on the floor to the purple and pink flowers on the ceiling.

Bermudez told the Hyattsville Wire that she is using a latex wall paint mixed with caulking to form a putty-like material.

“I applied the paint with a palette knife to create various textures mimicking the texture of a tree trunk,” she said. “In addition to painting on the walls and ceiling of DC Sweet Potato Cake, I enhanced the textures of the tree by adding artificial flower petals I painted and dyed by hand, and installed real tree branch on top of the painted tree.”

Bermudez previously worked with DC Sweet Potato Cake owner April Richardson when she painted a mural at the Savor food hall, now renamed Mixt.

Born and raised in Hyattsville, Bermudez studied art and design at Towson University, and now lives in Takoma Park, where her studio is located. She currently works at the Prince George’s African American Museum and Cultural Center in North Brentwood, where another of her murals is on display.

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