I'm often asked: what inspires your mosaic mandala designs? My quick and simplistic answer is "trees." However, there is a deeper, more intuitive answer.
In September of 2010 I wrote a post introducing my work in mosaic in which I use a round support and trees in the abstract as their central theme: "...I considered three things: one) the basic structure or support for a work; two) a new abstract study and three) painting materials. What evolved was a circular structure, a study of trees in abstract and tiny ceramic tiles as the painting medium...."
I love trees. For awhile I thought about publishing a 'coffee table' style book of photography of trees. There are so many varieties, in so many sizes, ages and conditions that I think you could fill several good sized volumes. Hmmm, I now live in an area that has a huge forest of trees so maybe I'll still do that book of photography. Anyway, back to mosaics.
My gallery page above has currently available mosaic mandalas of trees including Sunset Mandala Mosaic, Apples in the Sun and others. Trees are both majastic and beautiful. They give a sense of strength and permanence - of rootedness - in a world where we humans often feel like we're dry leaves at the mercy of a blowing wind.
Designs for these round pieces come to me without effort. Left on my own, faced with a 14" circular wood support, I see the finished work before I've even begun. Until this past Fall it wasn't a challenge to sketch out a design with which to complete in the tiny ceramic tiles I use. Then came a request for a commissioned work...actually two of them. And instead of being 12", 14" or 16" diameter, these were to be 30" diameter. Very large! There were also some themes to fit my designs into. I knew a tree would be central in the mosaics, but to fit with the client's overall theme I needed to add beach and ocean. Also, knowing the eventual placement of the finished pieces added to my design decisions. I decided to do beginning of the day and ending of the day abstract designs.
As I thought of the beginning of a day, I thought of the design:
...the design gives the hope of a new day dawning. Every day the sun rises on our planet and the promise of each new day is yet to be written...
And for the ending of a day:
...this design gives comfort. Whether the day has been long and difficult or short and sweet, the setting of the sun indicates that the gathering darkness will fall as a warm blanket giving comfort through the night until the sun rises again...
Kind of like thinking of encircling arms - being held safe and secure in the day as the sun lights our lives and being comforted and protected in the night as we sleep.
This post is part one of several about these mosaics. I want to share the creative process of design and work.
Let's begin with "End of Day." I decided to put the tree to the right [as you look at it] with its foliage as an overhanging canopy. Under this canopy is a setting sun dropping below the horizon of a darkening sea.
The very first consideration in doing these two designs was on what support to do them. Thirty inches diameter is rather large for a mosaic and I didn't want the weight of the support to be problematic. I'd heard of a material called wedi panels that just might do the trick. Wedi panels are very lightweight cement boards normally used by building contractors as a substrate for tile - like in bathrooms and kitchens. Mosaic artists have discovered it because it is lightweight, rigid, waterproof and weatherproof and frankly, mosaic tesserae stick to it fantastically! I ordered two 32" square sheets from MosaicSmalti.com and my son-in-law cut the 30" circles. Another thing about wedi panels, they cut quite easily with an exact-o knife or box cutter. Also, before beginning, I decided to smooth on a thin layer of thinset [a fine, high quality mortar or cement] which I sanded when it was dry. I wanted a smooth surface as the wedi comes with a waffle-like surface. Mosaic adhesive, Weldbond, works excellently on wedi as-is, but even more so on the dry thinset layer. The photo to the right shows the sun and horizon line for "End of Day" and you can see the thinset layer.
I began by sketching the design in pencil. I made a color map ahead of time, choosing which colors of tiles to use where. 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. For example, in the setting sun, I chose the three colors ahead: the pink, pastel orange and yellow. However I didn't pre-design the flow until I actually did it. I put in the yellow tile outline first. Then thought an inner layer of larger pastel orange was needed. From there I visualized inner curves within the sun. Cool how it all flows once you get started.
Next post: more about the creative process for "End of Day" and detail photos.
P.S. My previous post, "The Mosaic of Hannah's Quilt" indicated that we had a baby granddaughter due...well, Hannah made her debut in this world on Saturday evening, January 14. I'm one happy grandma!
Isn't it amazing being a grandmother? I simply had no idea how contented it would make me feel. Do you have a granddaughter or grandson? - Linda
Posted by: LindaMosaic | 01/30/2012 at 12:04 PM
BTW, I love trees too! I particularly like "naked" trees. I love being able to see the intricate design of the branches.
Posted by: Debbie Stevens | 01/29/2012 at 08:13 AM
Congratulations on the birth of your granddaughter! I became a grandmother 15 months ago and am ecstatic!
Posted by: Debbie Stevens | 01/29/2012 at 08:10 AM