Category: Art Review
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Getting Mosaic Artwork Right
Many artists are plagued with self-doubt, including some of the great ones, but there are several ways to overcome these fears and make better art: The first of these are quick, small studies and sketches which can be made before a particular detail in the main work is executed. In mosaic, a “sketch” can be…
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Thoughtful Backgrounds Improve Mosaic Artwork
Artist Bonnie Eisner emailed me a photo of her Hansa (Hand of Fatima) mosaic in progress because we were out of the color she wanted to use for the whole background. My solution to the shortage was to take the problem as an opportunity to enhance the design by using andamento, color variation, and pattern…
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The Amazing Stylistic Range of Figurative Mosaic Art
Artist Jennifer Kuhn has an impressive body of work that demonstrates the stylistic range of figurative mosaic artwork. Normally when I need to describe the range of styles of mosaic artwork, I emphasize how found objects can be used as improvised tiles and how that multiplies the number of styles of abstract art that are…
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The Importance of Context in Figurative Mosaic Art
Artist Lisa Sunshine emailed us asking about improving one of her recent mosaics, and Natalija and I both agreed that the problems Lisa perceived in her work largely disappeared when the mosaic was viewed at the appropriate distance. The situation reminded me of a line from the award-winning 1995 movie Clueless, which is the story…
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Floor Inset Mosaic Medallions
Artist Catherine Augustus recently installed some mosaic medallion insets in the floor of St Clare of Assisi Catholic Church on Daniel Island, South Carolina, and you might want to take a look. These mosaics were a volunteer project for the artist and her team of parishioners. They learned on the job and had to dance…
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Masterpiece Miniature Mosaic Series
In centuries past, crafts people worked in guilds, with a guild for each craft: shoemakers, gold smiths, etc. To join a guild, a person had to apprentice themselves to a member of the guild for years and work themselves up from repetitive physical work in the studio to more and more advanced tasks over time.…
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Mosaic Surfboards
Hermosa Beach artist Katy Jenssen makes mosaic surfboards, and for her, it is a logical choice of sculpture base. Katy’s family history and ethos are grounded in the local community, a premier beach town and surf destination, part of an area where a lot of Americana was born. Katy’s compositions fit the shape of the…
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Mosaic Art Opening
Artist Dorothy Stucki is having an opening reception for a show of her recent work, which includes some mosaics. The show is called “Angelic Presence,” and the opening is Sunday April 16th, 2023, from 4 to 7pm. Dorothy is a Mosaic Art Supply alum and a talented artist. She works in a variety of visual…
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Mixed-Media Mosaic with Ceramic Relief Sculpture
Artist Aly Winningham of Terra Firma Studios has some great mixed-media mosaic artwork. These wall-relief mosaics are a balanced mix of custom ceramic sculptural elements, found objects, and elements of conventional tesserae. I love mixed-media mosaic, and I love to make it myself, but the problem is that you have to spend time at yard…
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Value Contrast in Abstract Mosaic Artwork
Natalija has made some abstract stained glass mosaics over the years, and I noticed something about one of them last week: It’s as a great example of value contrast and its power for creating a sense of depth and increasing visual interest. I’ve written previously about the importance of value contrast in figurative mosaic artwork…
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Value Contrast and Variegation in Small Mosaic Artwork
I have written quite a bit about using color variegation to increase visual interest and the importance of value contrast in mosaic artwork. These two concepts are related, at least in a crude way: they both involve using multiple colors instead of one color, and they both make the artwork more interesting visually. Value Contrast…
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Rendering Light with Verisimilitude in Mosaic
Artist Karen Kittmer’s mosaics are beautiful works of art. They are also worthy of study for several different reasons if you are serious about improving your own mosaics. The first reason I recommend Karen’s work for study is that she renders light and shadow with photographic verisimilitude. The second reason is that Karen isn’t limited…