Artistic Creative Process-How Fun is This!

Remember last post that I talked about using wedi panel as the support for the two big mosaics I recently did on commission? [well, 30" diameter is a BIG mosaic work for me!] 

At left is a sample piece.  I put the mechanical pencil next to it for size reference.  You can see the waffle pattern I mentioned.  The dark gray color is the cement coating/layer.  I glued down several ceramic tiles so that I could test the adhesion...Wow!  Not only does Weldbond "adhese" securely, it seals the surface [not that it needed it]. Also another mosaic artist told me that the waffled surface does not adversely effect the gluing of tesserae, so you're wondering why did I smooth on a layer of thinset?  Mostly it was a creative decision because I wanted a white under layer and not a dark under layer...I did not grout these mosaics.

In the next photo you can see the inner layer of the support...this is what gives it such rigidity.  I do like using wood for the smaller works but wedi has opened up the possibility of doing much larger works.

When I design a mosaic I like to initially sketch it out on paper to-size and then color it in using crayons...this makes a color map.  Some artists do complete and accurate color renderings but I prefer to keep my color map more suggestive.  Coloring in the sketch with crayons gives me a way to see the balance and whether, through color, the design is meeting the objective I want to achieve.  Also, because it's not chisled in stone, I can change particular color areas as I work.

The tiles I use in my smaller mosaics are very tiny...usually just the 1/8" [nano size] square and 1/4" [micro size, not quite 1/4"] square sizes.  For these larger works I decided to use Tiny Tile Mosaics Micro size and Mini size [about 3/8" square].  That's a lot of little tiles!  Over 7,000 for each mosaic.

You can see a bit how I used the two sizes in the progress of the foliage for "End of Day" in the photo to the left.

Then there's the whole idea of andamento - the visual flow and movement in a mosaic work achieved by the placement of tesserae.  This is the element of doing a mosaic that is the most FUN for me.  I don't preplan the flow...as I mentioned in the previous post I like to have it just happen:

The way I work is to do the basic sketch but to allow the tile placement to be 'organic.'  Okay, saying organic sounds kind of California-y, avocados and sprouts doesn't it?  What I mean is that each individual tile is placed as it comes.

In the photo to the right in the work "Rise of Day," you can see what I mean - the beach sand I applied in a diagonal straight line with a bit of rough surf where the sand meets the water.  The ocean water in this piece has gentle waves with wave peaks at the far horizon line. As a dramatic difference, I made the rays of the rising sun ruler straight.  Movement that is achieved with a brush by a painter is achieved with the direction that each individual tile is glued down by the mosaic artist.

One of the things about mosaic I like is that a mosaic piece is like the painting technique called pointilism - a technique where dots of color [points, dashes or other ways of putting down small bits of color at a time] are applied.  Seen in extreme close-up you see only the points...as you back away from the artwork the colors begin to blend and you can see objects.  My favorite is by Georges-Pierre Seurat and his painting "Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte." 

The artistic creative process has been discussed by philosophers extensively.  I found just now a site on the web for a conference held October 2010 at Barnard College, Columbia University called, "The Philosophy of Creativity."  They asked:

What is creativity? How does it happen? How is it that creativity is manifest in discovery as well as invention, in science as well as art? In what ways might an audience participate in creating a work of art? What role does creativity play in the construction of the self?

Makes me think about creativity.  I experience creativity...I know how it feels and I think it happens intuitively [my opinion only]; that it is part and parcel of the human psyche and that it differs slightly person-to-person.  Each individual sees Art differently...everything we know [and don't know], everything we've experienced in our lives to that moment, how we feel emotionally at the time...all of this informs how we approach any work of art [including the music, writing and performance arts].

Everyone is creative.  Wait, before you protest here's why I say that.  Let's take a peanut butter and jelly sandwich as an example.  It's pretty basic: bread, peanut butter and jelly - the peanut butter and the jelly are put between two pieces of bread.  There.  Nothing creative about that is there?  Wait.  Yes there is.  Here comes the individualized creative decisions that go into your PB&J:

• which bread did you choose to use? Wheat? Rye? Sourdough? Oat and nut? Bargain brand white or bread machine-made cranberry and hazelnut?
• which peanut butter spread did you choose to use? A favorite brand because you are convinced it tastes better than any other? Creamy? Chunky? Honey added? "Natural?"
• which jelly did you choose to use? A grape jelly? A strawberry jam? An apricot preserve? A marmalade? An apple butter? Homemade fig?
• Did you spread the peanut butter on only one piece of the bread or both? Did you put jelly on just one piece of the bread or both?  Did you mix the peanut butter and jelly together and then apply it to the bread?  Did you add raisins to it?
• Once made, did you cut the sandwich into two pieces?  Four?  Triangles? Did you retain the crust or cut it off?

See, it's the variations, the choices we make, that are the proof of the creative processes involved.  When you make a PB&J you are indeed making creative decisions all the way through.

Creativity is not about picking up a pencil and drawing a realistic rendering of what's before you.  Creativity is the way our minds view and then interpret what we see.

Part three of my exploration of "Rise of Day" and "End of Day" will take a look at some of the details in each and the hanging apparatus.

 

 

Comments

[LindaMosaic]

Hi Debbie! Thanks so much for all the kind words, I truly appreciate them. One of the things I enjoy about Art is sharing it. I'm finding working in mosaic to be extremely fulfilling artistically. It's as though everything I've ever learned is realized in this art form and now I can truly express what I want to "say." Later this spring I'm going to teach a 2-day workshop in mosaic for beginners...mosaic as fine art expression not "craft." There is nothing wrong with using mosaic as a technique for a picture frame or the top of a jewelry box, but mosaic can be so much more and that's what I hope to communicate in my workshop. I've taught color, beginning acrylics, colored pencil and watercolor but this will be my first time out teaching mosaic. - Linda

[Debbie Stevens]

Linda,

I am so happy to have found your blog! First off, I love your mosaic mandalas. Your photography is beautiful as well.

I began mosaic art several years ago. I just jumped right in. I've never been particularly thrilled with what I've made, other than the second mosaic I ever did (a frame).

I've always told myself that I was going to take a color theory class, a design class and maybe a drawing class to give myself the skills needed to make a truly beautiful mosaic. Well, I haven't done that yet!

That's why I am happy to have found you. I love the instruction you give. It's really going to help me. I took a few years off from doing anything artistic and am itching to get back to it. However, this time I am going to do it right. I'm going to start from the beginning, learning and growing and eventually finding my voice. Your blog is going to help me a lot. Thank you!

Mandalas have always fascinated me and I've often thought about creating them in mosaic form. I found your blog by googling (yes, I love how that as become a verb!) "mandala mosaics".

I have much to learn.