New Pictures - Feb 2012

My friend Joe Byers was here for 2 days to shoot a video for the promotion of MosaicBlues - I had no clue of the amount of labor involved in such an endeavour!
Joe is really gifted with Lighting - as he was shooting the video per se, I shot a few still pictures  - Enjoy...

 Emma...

Yin Yang behind Buddha

Lio...

Christos...

Koinonia Kaffe

Koinonia Kaffe Mosaic Sign.

Yesterday, October 20, I installed Medusa at Koinonia Kaffe in Headland

Medusa, a classic Roman style Mosaic. Oct 2011

For the past 3 years, off and on, a number of my mosaics have been displayed at Koinonia

Rhonda Harrison, Owner and Manager of Koinonia, always smiling, does a great job to bring art and harmony to our community. Live music is played there on a regular basis, and Numerous work of arts of different artists are displayed at Koinonia. Mosaicblues works have been displayed there since our first show in August 2008

Marylin and Green Eyes at Koinonia

Beside that, the coffee and Food are outstanding - I encourage you to visit them in Headland, on the square. In difficult economic times, few people try to promote Art and Culture, we should all stick together for the common good of our communities.

August 2008 - Saint George Mosaic

 

 

MEDUSA - Minerva's Shield

Medusa, one of the three Gorgons, daughter of Phorcys and Ceto, was celebrated for her personal charms and the beauty of her hair locks. Neptune fell in love with her, and obtained her favors in the temple of Minerva. This violation of the sanctity of her temple did not amuse the chaste Minerva, who changed Medusa's beautiful locks into a bunch of hissing snakes. 

From that day on, Medusa's very look had the power to kill or turn people into stones. Perseus made himself immortal by his conquest of Medusa. He cut off her head, and the blood that dropped from the wound produced the innumerable serpents that infest Africa. He then placed Medusa's head on Minerva's shield.

Here is a preview of my last creation. MEDUSA will be available as a TABLETOP, as a flooring decoration or as a Wall display. 

This Medusa is the closest one can be of Traditional Roman Mosaics - only better as its smoothness makes it perfect to be used as a table...

With the exception of the snakes tongues made of bright red glass, It is exclusively made of stones - no ceramic or terra cota - but only granites, marbles, travertines, and possibly a few others. It is 27 inches in diameter. Medusa has a very smooth and shiny finish. It was designed to make a gorgeous Coffee Table, but would also look fantastic on your wall. 

The table itself is welded steel and cast aluminum alloy.

Marylin Mosaic

Every one knows Marylin...

After Nikki, Marylin is my second experiment with the direct method of laying the tesserae. This the Wysiwyg of Mosaics...

Marylin is exclusively made of recycled glass materials, no more than 3/16" in thickness. This material is more brittle than regular glass, and does not cut as well.. It provides however a very beautiful and more modern look.  

Because of the thinness of the material, This mosaic is much lighter than the usual stone ones. 

The original picture. 

For portraits, I exclusively work in Black and White or Sepia tones, and enhance the image by using a colored background around it. In this case, the background is black as it was originally in the picture. In the Nikki Mosaic, I used blues, greys ans greens to suggest the ocean.

I am available for commissions. Send me a picture of yourself, of a loved one, of your pet, and I'll produce a beautiful mosaic portrait for you.

Please contact me by clicking this link !

Marilyn

There is no need to introduce Marilyn...

 

I began laying the tesserae on July 23rd, I used a total of 6 different colors : Black, White, and 4 different shades of brown.

On August 28, I completed the pose of the last tesserae. I still have to remove Marilyn from her support and transfer her onto some rigid material before I can frame her. 

I am using for Marilyn the same direct pose technique and the same type of materials I have used for the Nikki Mosaic : Recycled glasses.

Keep in touch, I will post more pictures of the mounting and framing of Marilyn...

The NIKKI Mosaic

"Nikki" is the first mosaic I created using the Direct method. (All the ones before were done using the Indirect  Method)

With the Direct method, you actually see your work while you are making it. (in the Indirect Method, you build your mosaic upside down - you only see the final result once you flip it !   

This was an unusual situation for me !  I was able to work this way because I used tesserae (tiles) of the same thickness. "Nikki" is entirely made of recycled and irridized glass tiles. 

Because of this, this piece is a much lighter piece than anything I produced before -  a good idea for portraits...

Dimensions : 14 x 24” ( 34 x 60 cm).

Many thanks to the real Nikki who had the kindness to be my model for this experimental creation.

Green Eyes

Here is my last creation - Green eyes is a portrait - limited to the eyes - inspired by a photograph of a Tuareg Lady seen in a French Magazine of years ago. 

There is lots of mystic about Tuaregs. At the beginning of the 20th century 2 authors came up with very similar novels "SHE" by Ridder Hagard - and "L'Atlantide"  by Pierre Benoit. involving mysterious and powerful African princesses closely related to the Tuareg people. Carl Jung considered that these heroins were incarnation of the feminine archetype he described as the Anima.

There has also been lots of controversy about the possibility that Tuareg people could have light colored eyes. I am not sure about that, but I liked that picture, so, here we are, another portrait.   Green eyes measures 13 x 26 inches, it is made out of travertine, black granite, ceramics, porcelains and various irridized glasses and mirrors. I hope you enjoy it. 

If you are interested, this piece is for sale, as well as most of the ones on my website Mosaicblues. You can contact me contact by e-mail or by phone at (334) 798 1639