The Lady Dragon Mosaic on Brač Island

 

Art in general and Mosaic in particular are most excellent medium to foster individual and group creativity and empower local communities to take control of their own future.

Every year, a number of fascinating mosaic community projects are organized around the world. These projects are of many different kinds. They have very different subjects, participants, financing and organization. There is a lot to learn by studying and comparing what various groups do.

Today I am sharing with you the work of my friend Robert Lisac, a gifted and generous mosaicist from Slovenia, who led the building of a Dragon Mosaic on Brač Island in Croatia. 

 

 

The Brač Island Dragon

Questions to Mosaic Artist Robert Lisac

August 2016

 

Robert, I am very interested in using mosaics as medium for community projects. And I have decided to study some of these most interesting projects and share the results of my research ! 

As such, I have been following, from far away, a fascinating project you have been involved with. I mean the Great mosaic Dragon you guys are building on Brac Island. And I would like to ask you some questions about it.

 

First of all, tell me a little more about the location of this Dragon. Where is Brac Island, any thing particular about it ?

Frederic, thank you for this opportunity you have offered me, to tell more about the Lady dragon project. Brač island is in Croatia and is well known for its beautiful beaches and it is a hotspot for windsurfing fanatics. Also young people like to visit Brač, because there they can party. 

 

 

 

But Brač has so much more to offer, because its history is closely connected to dragons, because St. George is the main patron of the island and there is also the famous dragon's cave.

 

It looks very beautiful on the pictures. How do you get there ? 

 

The easiest way to get to Brač is with the ferry from Split, but the Dragon lady is located in a village on Brač called Milna. Actually it's accessible by foot from Milna. It takes you about 15 minutes to walk there. If you have a jeep-like car you're there in five minutes.

The dragon is located on the Geaviva site (www.geaviva.net), run by a very brave woman from Germany, her name is Sabine Engelhardt.

 

 

If I remember well this is the third year of construction of the Dragon, who is part of a wider project. Can you tell me more about this whole project ? Who got it started ?

I always wanted to create a big mosaic. So I told Sabine about this idea and she was so generous to offer her site to actually make a big project.

Because the island's history is so closely connected to the dragon, Sabine suggested to build one. I found that this was an awesome idea and so we started the whole thing.

So we sent newsletters to her and my base of people to invite them to participate. The whole project based on voluntary work and no payments were involved. So it was more a childhood dream which turned into reality.

Foundation Work

People responded surprisingly well and many of my mosaicworkshop students were also coming to be a part of this great story, but also other people from all over the world were helping over the last 3 years to complete this cute 8 meters long "beast".

 

Because the project was much bigger than we previously thought, we had to come back to Brač several times. Because it was an open project, anyone could come and help. Even a fellow mosaicist Ilonka, a Croatian who lives in Germany came to help.

Can you also give us a little history of the construction of the Dragon, what did you achieve each year ?

The first year we managed to create the whole sculpture. We thought we would end the sculpture in 5 days, but we were wrong. The first four days we were mixing a looot if concrete, carrying stones, which were the main "ingredients" for the statue. 

 

 

 

Of course we also used some iron sticks, which we integrated in the statue as "bones", so the whole statue was well built and solid.

 

 

August 8, 2014

 

Then one time there was a opening ceremony of the stone-circle, very close to the dragon, where you can meditate and where nowadays are frequently held different workshops (geomancy, dancing, traditional crafts, dry stone building, building in an ecological way...) and of course I went there again, just to be there, to enjoy the opening ceremony and to work on the dragon lady for a few hours.

 

The third time I went there was with another group and with my family. I wanted to celebrate my birthday there and it was because of this peaceful environment where nowadays is also an eco-camp.

 

 

 

Between these trips also other people were working on the project and recently Sabine held a mosaic workshop by herself to finish the statue. She is really an amazing woman and just because of her the whole project was possible.

 

Okay, I brought the knowledge about making mosaics and I was leading the project from an artistic point of view, but she was the main driving force when it comes to the organizational and practical stuff like where and how to get the ceramic tiles, the concrete. 

 

She was organizing the cooking of the splendid food, I mean she is a hell of a woman and a friend of mine I respect very much.

 

 

What materials did you use to build the frame of the Dragon, what kind of Mosaic Tiles are you using ?

As I said, tons of stones, ray-bars, concrete and all kind of tiles. Because of the mild Mediterranean climate conditions there we were using also "indoor" mosaic tiles.

 

 

 

How many people were involved in the project ? 

 

Over 50 I guess?

 

How was it financed ? 

 

It was a voluntary project and heavily supported on all levels by Sabine.

What was your personal involvement in this project, how did you become involved ? 

 

I led the whole artistic and mosaic part of the project, but I want to point out, that this was a community projects where many creative and very nice people were involved. So it's not an ego project as Wim Hof would say, it's a we-go project. A leader of a superb orchestra is nothing without the orchestra.

 

What are the main problems you met ?

 

From a technical point of view it was the immense heat, when we were building the sculpture.

 

You know it's hot when you have to build a shelter...

 

So we worked very early in the morning from 6 am to 10 am and in the evening from 6 pm to 8 pm. It was so poetical to have an early morning coffee with like-minded people and finishing the day with a look on the marvelous sunset.

 

Sunset on a Dragon's tail.

 

We also had to take care that the thinset for the ceramic tiles wouldn't drying to fast because of the heat.

My main problem was maybe to be able to stop working and maybe pushing people too far. You know, it is extremely difficult to stop doing things you love. Fortunately my friend Volker Siebert, who also contributed a lot of good energy and work to this project was gently stopping me, when I pushed it too far.

What is the greatest pleasure about building it ?

 

Oh, there were many! First of all to work with so many different people from all walks of life. In our everyday life we all live and work together, but we are not really together in an emotional and personal sense. It was so refreshing to work with so many different and extraordinary people which were enjoying the fact, that it is allowed to play on a big scale like children. Money wasn't important. There were no rigid goals. This project was made from people for people! 

 

 

It was a joy to see, how fascinated children AND adults were about the project. 

 

 

 

So from this point of view you start to understand that great things were always achieved because people were working TOGETHER and that we have to let go this sick mindset of competition, of competing everywhere and all the time. If you compete, there can be only one winner and the rest are the losers. Such an ill concept! We as a humankind survived because of collaboration, because we helped each other, because we practiced "togetherness".

 

This is a female and soft but very strong principle and approach to life. This is why the dragon spontaneously evolved into a dragon lady. It didn't happened on purpose at all. It was an unconscious thing. The dragon lady is a symbol of "togetherness".

 

Oh, and I forgot, I also really enjoyed having a beer with my friends after the work...

 

And so did the Dragon !

 

Reach Robert Lisac at : 

• Email  : roartdoo@gmail.com

• Site : http://www.robertlisac.com

• Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/robert.lisac.10

• Geaviva organization : www.geaviva.net

 

I am a French Mosaic artist based in Alabama. I am presently working on several Mosaic Community Project involving several hundreds participants in partnership with Troy University in Dothan and the Wiregrass Museum of Art.

 

If you would like to discuss mosaics for community building or are interested by other aspects of my work, please contact me by phone at (334) 798 1639 or by email at frederic.lecut@mosaicblues.com   

You can also subscribe to my NEWSLETTER

Pictures Credit :  

• Robert Lisac, 

• Geaviva album : Creating a mosaic Dragon

   

ROBERT LISAC, Mosaic Artist - Interview

Meet the very talented Robert Lisac, Mosaicist from Slovenia...

I am not sure exactly when I first met you Robert Lisac. I remember seeing one of your mosaics on Pinterest. A portrait of King George, the older Australian Aborigene depicted in the movie Australia, also featuring Nicole Kidman.

I found this portrait very powerful, and felt compelled to contact you. We started to exchange through emails and instant messages, and realized we had things in common beside mosaics, Martial Arts, and the practice of several languages being some of them. Today, I would like to ask you a few questions about your Art, and share them with mosaic aficionados of the world !

1 - Robert, you live in Slovenia. You make and teach mosaics there. Your portfolio includes a variety of styles, and I would like to speak about several of them.  I first met you through this King George Portrait. King George is a man who lives in harmony with nature. He does not submit nature to his will, but pulls his resilience from nature. I feel a strong current of Life Energy in your mosaics. Where do you get this strength ?

Frederic, maybe this strength is coming from just trusting my own intuition. I just wanted to make this mosaic portrait, because I just admired the whole story King George represents. OK, I’m really strong in making portraits, but personally I really like the more intuitive process of making mosaics and in this case it was a combination of both aspects, making a mosaic portrait in a very intuitive way. Normally I never make portraits in that way. 

2 - One other amazing project you have been involved with is a monumental mosaic Dragon in Brac. A community project. Can you tell us more about this, how did you get involved with this project, how big is the Dragon, how many people were involved, when will it be complete ? I understand there is a stone circle beside the site of the Dragon, are these prehistoric remains ?

This is for sure one of my most favourite mosaic projects. Actually it is a dragon lady and she is 8 m long. The dragon lady isn’t finished yet. About half of the dragon is covered already with ceramic tiles and at the end of April we have to cover the rest. It is a volunteer project, nobody gets paid for anything and we are just there, because we love to be creative and without an amazing team of enthusiasts who helped me a loooot, this project would still be just an idea.

We built that dragon on Brač island on the Geaviva site (www.geaviva.net) and the owner of this site is Sabine Engelhardt and it was her idea to make the dragon, because the history of Brač is closely connected to dragons. There is even a dragon cave on the island and you should really visit it, because also the guide who makes the whole tour is really great!

After a few days of making the dragon it turned out, that it had a lot of female energy, so from then on it’s a lady. You can see more pictures of the whole process here : http://www.robertlisac.com/mosaic-dragon-statue-on-brac/

The stone circle is actually a geomantic structure, because Sabine is practising geomancy and is giving also workshops on this topic. Geomancy is like feng shui, but the approach is more Western orientated and much more practical. Today the stone circle serves as a place for geomancy workshops, dancing workshops, permaculture workshops and of course for meditation.I think, that Sabine created something really great !

I have to say, that also Ilonka Vukaš a croatian mosaic artist, who lives in Germany helped a lot in the second phase to cover the dragon lady with ceramic tiles. You see, it’s a project where everyone is welcome and if anyone is interested to participate in this project to finish the dragon on 25, 26 and 27 of April, you are kindly invited to do so, but please contact Sabine : www.geaviva.net.




 

3 - For the past year or so, you have become more and more involved in Mikromosaics. I even remember reading a post of yours explaining how you made your own ceramic micro tesserae. This is a fascinating aspect of your work. Not only do you make mosaics, you also make the ceramic you use to make your mosaics ! Can you tell us more about making your own mosaic material ?

I wish I could answer this question in a short way, because there is so much to say about this topic. The main reason why I make a lot of my mosaic materials by myself is that if I want to buy it, it’s just to expensive and very often I don’t even like the materials, because they are not unique and therefore the mosaic is looking like very other mosaic. So, I found out, the more I’m involved in making my own tesserae, the more soul the whole mosaic has. Of course this is my opinion and it has not to be true for other mosaic artists. So I started to experiment with it a lot, I was even pit firing my tesserae and these were experiments, some went wrong, but the result was actually always positive, because I learned a lot. Here are more about pit firing clay tesserae : http://www.robertlisac.com/pit-firing-micro-mosaic-tesserae/

4 - Back to the Micromosaics. It is a mosaic form I do not know much about. Many artists around the world make micromosaiks. Can you tell us a little more about this style of mosaic and why you have been attracted to it.

There are several reasons why I like to make micro mosaics at the moment. 

1. With the birth of my daughter a lot of things changed and I found out, if I wanted to stay creative I had to use the small amount of time whenever I could to work a little bit on my mosaics and micro mosaics are perfect to do just that. All you have to do is taking a box out of the drawer and then you can just start. With « normal » mosaics it’s not that easy. 

Timelines, 10 x 10 cm (4 x 4")

2. I’m some kind of minimalist working on a such small level is much closer to a green living philosophy, than big making mosaics from artificial materials.

Windows of opportunities, 10 x 10 cm (4 x 4") - Sold

3. I just love it, although it’s a sadomasochistic process...

5 - You also have experimented with Pebble mosaics. I even remember an interview you made of a great Pebble mosaic artist.  Some of the first Greek mosaics we have are located in Pella, in Macedonia. They were made of tiny pebbles. Do you harvest them yourself on a beach or on a river bank, or do you purchase them ?

As I told before, the more I’m involved in the process of making my own materials, the better the result. So, I avoid buying pebbles, because there are everywhere and this is why I’m not a normal tourist, when I’m somewhere at a river or on a beach with beautiful pebbles. That’s why I’m always looking down instead of looking around ;-).

Let the sun shine on me 10 x 10 cm (4 x 4")

6 - Your work is definitely and vibrantly  modern, and yet, mosaics are one of the earliest form of Art we have from our prehistoric ancestors. When you create one of your mosaics, you repeat the same moves our Roman ancestors were using to create theirs. Is that a part of your inspiration ?

You made a good point here. Yes, of course I like the idea, that mosaic artists were making the same things in their own way as I do today. But for me personally I do more like the crazy paving style, because it’s more dynamic. Can you imagine King George done in a Greek or Roman way ? I can’t, but I do respect these classical styles a lot, because they started the whole thing.

7 - It seems that like me you believe an artist should be involved in teaching art, and helping people realize they too can, and should be creative, I understand you give classes and seminars. Can you tell us more about these ?

Bruce Lee once said : "Absorb what is useful, discard what is not, add what is uniquely your own". This is how I was teaching martial arts and this is how I teach making mosaics. I try to give them what my students need, I try to help them to discover their style right from the beginning, because I believe that mosaics should serve to the people and not the opposite way. That’s why it’s much more important, if they learn to express themselves, the more they will express themselves, the better also the technique will be. My goal is to give workshops also in Switzerland, Austria, Germany and everywhere else where they speak English, because the Slovene market is so small and I enjoy travelling, teaching and of course meeting other mosaic enthusiasts.

 

8 - Beside the fact that it stands on the beautiful Adriatic sea, I do not know much about your country.  Your main Website is written in Slovenian language. You have sites in English and German on the net. Do you sell lots of your work outside of Slovenia ? Are there Galleries in Europe where people could see your work ? Please give us the links to these places where we can meet you on the net ?

Frederic, you have to come to sLOVEnia, we have beautiful mountains, the sea, caves and tons of cool pebbles ;-) and of course good wine and beer.

Contact Robert Lisac:

My Slovene homepage is : www.robertlisac.com
My German homepage is www.mikromosaik.blogspot.com
  Please feel free to contact me, even if you are not speaking Slovene or German, I know some English as you see and if you have any question or comment, please let me know.

My email address is : roartdoo@gmail.com .
 
And of course you can also join my FB fanpages :
https://www.facebook.com/robertlisacartist or
https://www.facebook.com/mikromosaik .
 

Frederic, thank you so much for this interview and this great opportunity. 

I am a French Mosaicist established in Alabama, USA. I blog about all things mosaic ! If you enjoyed this interview of Robert be sure that by subscribing to my:

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