“Why do I express myself in mosaic?” This is a question I often ask myself as I wade through some of the more elaborate works I set out to create. Watching painters and print media practitioners, I often feel slightly jealous at the ease of their production in comparison to mine. But then, I am the one who chose this medium, and I have come to realise that whilst I may not be patient, I have loads of perseverance.

Mosaic for me is/was a natural progression. Developed from a past spent working in the tiling industry, it was a logical choice. Often I would suggest a feature to clients and end up making it myself. Years on, I found myself increasingly dissatisfied with the architectural options available and decided to make mosaics full time. Working in isolation, I kept developing my skills. I began training others and delivering public art projects. It wasn’t until I discovered there was to be an International Symposium on Mosaic (AIMC) in Melbourne (2004), that I really became aware of how strong the mosaic movement was globally and that I wanted to be a part of it.

Attending that conference was an epiphany. Meeting people like George Fishman, Helen Bodycomb, and David Jack gave me a desire to keep going and challenge myself in new areas. Seeing smalti for the first time, meeting people from all over the world, and admiring the amazingly different works at the exhibitions all added up to a sense of purpose and the realization of my dream. Several years later, it’s off to America for Miami SAMA (2008), where I met hundreds of fantastic, creative, inspiring people.

Mosaic is only a medium that allows me to achieve what I really seek: communication with like-minded people.

—Dominic Johns
Juror’s Choice
Mosaic Arts International 2009
Telescopus
7.2‘ H X 14.75’ W X 3.9‘ D
Iridescent and phosphorescent vitreous glass, Mexican glass pebbles, hand-chiseled
Chillagoe marble

Have you ever been obsessed when working on a jigsaw puzzle? Have you ever been seduced by jewel-like colors, stones on the beach, materials natural and man-made? Do you get deep satisfaction when occupied with physical involvement in your work? Do you like surprises? Do you like to solve problems creatively? With all that energy, are you still patient? Then mosaicing is for you! Imagine combining it all: creating the jigsaw puzzle as you put it together, letting the materials that turn you on and the ideas you are passionate about expressing be your guides. I love how light playing on the fragments and the flow, or andamento, of a mosaic bring it to life. Even wall panels become very three-dimensional.

In my artwork, I love combining mosaic elements with other sculptural elements to create poetic narratives. I love combining historical and art-historical references with modern elements to express a universal sense of who we are and the timeless dualities inherent in the human condition. The limitless ways of doing mosaics offer a wealth of possibilities for realizing whatever is driving my ideas, and set up fun challenges to push my technical creativity.

Best In Show
Beneath the Surface, 2006
Medusa (after Caravaggio)
42”H X 36”W X 40”D
Smalti, wood, magic sculpt, acryric, wire

Formerly a painter, in love with texture, I began adding objects to my canvases. Now working in mosaic art, I do the reverse, sometimes adding a little paint to my mosaics. I work intuitively, so the process is never too preplanned. I love building dimension with a broad variety of materials, and many times a found object is the first thing that triggers the whole creative process for me.

My mosaics have a lot of mixed media in them, giving me a lot of freedom. I do not place any boundaries on my work, so I can explore the world around me and recycle it into something new and unexpected with any materials I find.

The process of laying each piece of tesserae down is just like a paint stroke to me, so the process is “in the moment,” like that of an abstract expressionist.

--Leann Wooten
Juror’s Choice
Beneath the Surface, 2006
Freedom Outside
Glass, mixed media

In the last 7 years I have been creating mosaics mostly in Italian glass. The uniqueness of the medium and the distinct method required to successfully complete a mosaic are the characteristics of mosaic art that appeal to me greatly. The process—the vivid portrayal of a subject using vibrant colours that are emotive though laid out in an orderly and rational fashion—reflects the present stage in my own artistic development.

I have always focused on societal issues, especially those involving women and their plight. I’ve selected mythological and biblical stories of courageous females who, despite overwhelming odds, prevail through sheer courage and wise resolve. The Queen Esther Series (based on the biblical story), brings together a contemporary message and a Byzantine approach, thus earning a place in today’s critical postmodernist thought. As the noted American artist Leonard Koscianski has written:

“Critical postmodern art is based on the postmodern assertion that all artist perspectives are valid, but unlike postmodernism, the critical postmodern holds that greater understanding of society is possible by viewing it through the lens of individual artworks or narratives. . . .Because it respects the validity of the individual artist’s perspective, critical postmodern art pays respect to the integrity of that perspective more than was the case with postmodern art….and hence it is often more highly crafted than postmodern works and more accessible and communicative.” *

Koscianski, L. “What is Critical Postmodern Art?” Tamara, The Journal of Critical Postmodern Behavioral Science. 2002.

--Lilian Broca
Best Two-Dimensional Mosaic
Opus Veritas: Fragments of Truth, 2004
and Beneath the Surface, 2006
Queen Esther with Mordechai
Smalti, vitreous glass, gems on panel

I was never a painter; brushes and paint never called to me. Pastels have appeal, but only to flesh out my color schemes for a composition. I think I gravitated to mosaic because the medium seemed to fit well with my graphic design background. When I discovered the myriad choices of materials that one can use as tesserae, I couldn’t wait to get up from my computer desk and out to the studio to smash, chop, and form pieces to put into a work of art.

For my paint, I select from the rich colors of smalti and various ceramic glazes. The subtle coloration of natural stone adds contrast and texture. Wire and metal add an additional shiny component.

I found I could use my design skills to create art for myself as well as for clients who dictate the content. Instead of designing a brochure for someone, I now design a floor, a backsplash, or a mural.

I derive satisfaction from working in an art form with an ancient tradition. Although my work is contemporary and abstract, it pleases me to work with simple tools, in a process that is inherently painstaking and slow. Our lives today move too fast. Creating mosaic art forces me to slow down—if only for just a few hours a day!

—Lynn Adamo
Juror’s Choice
Mosaic Arts International 2007
Bosphorus Dockside
Handmade felt, handmade tile, smalti, stone, rusted iron, wood

I mosaic because I can’t fly. I mosaic to keep my head down. I mosaic because of a promise I made. I mosaic to keep in tune. I mosaic to keep in time. I mosaic in order to not mosaic. I mosaic to please the stone. I mosaic because sometimes I lie awake in the middle of the night, and sometimes the windows are open in our bedroom, and I hear the geese calling to each other as they fly over.

I mosaic because of that old woman with the piercing eyes who walks down our street with her stroller, on her way for groceries, and who said to me the other day, while I was picking up bits of a broken beer bottle in the street, “Lot more trash in the neighborhood these days.” And I said, “Yes, yes, there is.” And she said, “Beautiful day, though.” And I said, “Yes, it is.” And the wind was blowing, and she shuffled on, and I still had work to do.

—Brooks Tower

Best In Show, Mosaic Arts International 2007
Market Day II
33.5” H X 21.5” W X 2”D
Granite, onyx, travertine, marble, porcelain

“Why do I express myself in mosaic?” The short answer is surface quality.

I came to mosaic as mixed media sculptor. I wanted to add color to the surface of objects but was uninterested in the application of paint. I work in mixed media sculpture to invite a tactile experience, and the materials I use for mosaic have added to my repertoire of surface qualities.

As my pieces grew in size, so did my interest in creating large-scale exterior artworks. The mosaic work, in combination with my carved concrete forms, became the perfect vehicle for ideas I wanted to propose for public art projects.

Drawing has also been essential in my artistic development. As my skills with mosaic improved, I found that I was able to draw and design more complex images to mosaic. While for some artworks mosaic is still used as a surface enhancement, for my narrative works it is my medium of choice to develop images. I often say that these mosaic works are paintings made with chunks of colors.

—Sherri Warner Hunter

Best Three-Dimensional Mosaic, Mosaic Arts International 2009
Swimming Tiger Bench
3’ H X 14’ W X 2.5’ D
Ceramic and glass mosaic over uniquely carved foam and modeled concrete

Mosaic is a medium that never ceases to amaze me. Just when I think I have the measure of it or it can’t possibly hold any more, some amazing new facet reveals itself.

I don’t think there is another medium like it. From that simple cube, generating pattern which is open and accessible to anyone, young or old, no matter how limited their artistic ability, mosaic seems to open its heart to all. There is definitely something very primeval in a human’s ability and need to seek out pattern in our lives, and mosaic is a great way to feed that need.

I also find great satisfaction in the combination of artistic and aesthetic endeavour, together with the sheer physical force of mosaic making—the breaking of tesserae, mixing cement, and pushing the pieces in. Mosaic has a truth and balance built into its existence: the balance of design and labour, and a truth in the direct way that the tesserae reveal that labour in all its myriad forms.

As one fellow mosaic artist whispered to me recently... mosaic is magic!

—Gary Drostle

Best Architectural Mosaic, Mosaic Arts International 2008
The DeLuci Fish Sculpture
7.5m H x 3.0m W x 3.0m D
Vitreous glass on polymer-modified concrete over carved Styrofoam form with steel armature

I have worked in many media over the years—graphite, ink, colored pencil, oil, watercolor, and even scratchboard. They all have their place in my repertoire of art supplies. Today, however, I choose to use tactile materials, such as glass, stone, porcelain, and beads to make my art.

It is the textures and the colors that draw me in—the need to create something that moves, converses with, and surprises the viewer. I love the challenge of combining the colored tesserae in such a way as to create a color entirely different, the process of gluing thousands of tiny pieces of glass to a surface that when viewed from a distance becomes a realistic image.

Mosaic has broadened my view of what art is. It has given me the desire to go beyond the two-dimensional surface and seek the third dimension. It has opened my eyes to possibilities that I never knew existed and abilities I never knew were there inside me.

—Shug Jones

Best Large-Scale Exterior Mosaic, Mosaic Arts International 2007
Tracks of Our Past and Future
6’ H X 72’ W
Vitreous glass tile, millefiori

I grew up walking on and touching 3000-year-old mosaic floors and murals. I never thought that one day I’d be working with tiny tesserae and these reflections from my childhood to create contemporary mosaic art.

Mosaic fine art was not as well known 19 years ago (when I started mosaics) as it is now. Today it is blooming, and it’s a wonderful feeling to see it around us more often.

When I paint I have an idea in mind and try to translate it onto paper or canvas with my colors. But when I try to work with tesserae I become a young child who’s trying to assemble all these shapes and colors to create something exciting.

You are supposed to stand away from a painting to get the whole picture and capture the feeling that the artist put into his work. It’s the opposite in mosaic. You are drawn closer and sometimes even tempted to try and touch what you see. You stare, admire, and discover over and over again. Mosaic takes your eyes and emotions on an artistic journey. The endless materials and creativity used in contemporary mosaic makes it the richest medium ever.

—Carole Choucair Oueijan

Juror’s Choice, Mosaic Arts International 2008
Orchis Morio Libanai M1
30” H X 36” W X 1” D
Smalti, iridescent glass, marble, granite

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