Maribel's Eyes

Maribel's Eyes were completed in November 2012.
It is made of Black Granite, Ceramics and Glasses .

Maribel Verdú is a Spanish actress. She is absolutely amazing playing the beautiful Luisa in the 2001 Mexican film "Y tu Mamá También".

 Maribel's Eyes

The eyes are the mirror of the soul.

 I take commissions...

Maribel - in Process

Maribel - In Process

 

Eva's Eyes

I just realized today that I had completed quite a few pieces and never had published them. 

So here is the first of them : 

Eva's Eyes was completed in October 2012. Made of glasses, ceramics and granite, this piece is 14 x 54 inches (35 x135 cm). The frame is metallic.

French actress and model Eva Green was born on 1980. She achieved fame by appearing as Princess Sybilla in Kingdom of Heaven (2005), and as Vesper Lynd in the James Bond film Casino Royale (2006).

 

Eyes, Eyes, Eyes - October 2012.

It has been a while since I published anything. I had decided to experiment with steel frames. I believe this is probably the way to go for heavy pieces, such as the series of eyes I am working on presently.

Because these pieces are long and can be fragile (I broke one or two of them, and the repair work is something I would rather not have to do again) I now reinforce the backing board with wood before I transfer the mosaic onto it. I also thought the steel frame would also considerably reinforce the whole piece.

 
As I am not equipped to weld, I had to find welders to help me, this took a little while, tests, and errors (on my part)... 

Anyway, I am about to publish 3 more pieces, I need to get some good pictures of them, but  - for your eyes only - here are details of two of them,..

 "Los Ojos de Maribel"

and 

"Les Yeux d'Eva"...

Both pieces are approximately 53 x 14 inches (133 x 35 cm), and made of ceramics, glasses and granites.

Stay tuned, I will soon publish full pictures of these pieces. 

Send me a picture of the eyes of a person dear to you, I will create a beautiful mosaic of them.

Reversed method

Most of my mosaics are made according to the reverse - or inverted method. I build them upside down, glue them on their support then flip them.

There are several reasons to do that :

When you work with materials of different thickness, and you want a flat , smooth result, this practically is the only solution.

It is also, in my opinion, results in a smoother  mosaic than the direct method.

The drawbacks are that you do not see exactly what you are doing, the colors of materials may be very different. Mirrors, for example, are usually grey or blue in the back. Stones are usually not polished on both sides, and the unpolished side is generally of a very different color ...

Here is an example of a piece right before and right after its flipping in August 2012. Remember than one is the mirror image of the other. You can see how the black granite looks very different in both pictures  Usually, non polished stones have much duller colors - but at times, the colors may be totally different from one side to the other... This is the case for some porcelains  and of most mirrors.

Eva's Eyes is mostly made of granite and ceramics. I will publish it in a few weeks when I have completed it. Once a piece is flipped, there are still quite a few hours to clean it up, grout it and frame it.

Mathilde

The Mathilde Mosaic was completed a few month ago, but, it was a birthday present for a young lady dear to me who just turned 27 last Sunday. So, until now, I had not been able to publish it...

Until today, I had refered to her as the Mysterious Woman... Now you can see and know her by her real name.

Mathilde is made of glass and iridescent glass tiles, and she measures 18 x 30 Inches (46 x 76 cm).

The Original Mathilde Picture

I take commissions - if you desire a portrait of a loved one, - or are intereseted in any other mosaic work -  please contact me and let us discuss your project.

Looking for a Name

So this is my last creation - and she has no name yet. In my archives, she is "3D Torso" - I posted pictures of her on Facebook, asking for names. I have had quite a few so far, inspired from various traditions, including pure redneck (Tits Mc Gee...)

 

This lady is made of glass tiles, her background is of black granite and black beach pebbles 

The piece is 36 x 22 " (90 x 55 cm) without the frame. 

NAMES : 

Here are the  names I received so far : 

Pachamama

Mère Nature

Gaïa

Tuatha Dé Danan

Brigit

Vénus

Arduinna
Diana Arduinna

Nagge

Salome

Naarah

Rebekah

Hannah

Man's Desire

Bettina (She has a fine patina)

La femme tronc

Tits McGee!

Venus Emerging
Gwenn

Please tell me which name you like the best !

THE SOURCES

The Green tattoos are shaped like young ferns leaves

in remembrance of the war paints of the Picts, the hard fighting Scottish warriors of the Roman period - Do you remember Gwenyffar in the last King Arthur's movie ? 

Apparently, green and blue war paints were a staple common to numerous celtic populations. But the Picts may have used them more than other tribes - as their latin name "Picti" - from "pingere" - to paint - actually means "painted or tattooed people."


Her bikinis seem more modern ?  Actually, they really are not...

Have a look at these athletes :

These ladies date from around 400 AD. This mosaic is part of the decoration of the Villa Romana Casale in Sicily.

And you thought Bikinis had been invented by a Frenchman in 1946 ?

The Saxophone Players awarded

The Saxophone Players won a Merit Award at the 12th Annual Regional Juried Art Exhibition of the Dale County Council of Arts and Humanities, at the Ann Rudd Museum of Arts in Ozark, AL, on Saturday, August 18.

The Sax Players Mosaic is  18 x 18 inches ( 46 x 46 cm). It is made of ceramics, granite, marbles and gilded mirror.

 The Show is open to the public until September 28, 2012

Also displayed at the show were the Christ Icon 

and the Tree of Life