Welcome, Bienvenidos!

Studio Dog

 Moving right along with this cool mosaic. Each sheet of glass is unique - that is the beauty of working with stained glass and one of the many reasons I love working with glass. No two sheets of glass are ever the same and shopping for glass is such a pleasure for me.
I like to match the "grain" or flow of the glass with the subject; in this case the fur of Wilber the bobcat.  My reference is the graphic logo of TWC and a photograph of a real bobcat. The photo is for value reference - where are the lights & dark contrasts and middle values; where my hardest and softest edges are.
Also, for the cat I custom cut and fit each piece rather than cutting many pieces at once. More labor, but feels right and that is how my style has evolved for all animals I do in mosaic. The background will be a repeat pattern and will go much faster.  Risa - first class studio pup!



First Class Studio Dog - on the job

Classic Risa

Another day of mosaic and Risa.  She is my constant companion and this are classic, everyday things we do.  Go do any errands early in the morning if it will be warm. Then studio time or Admin time online. Risa snoozes while patiently waiting. Work on the TWC mosaic going smoothly so far. The interesting part will be attaching the mosaic to the board.  Tricky but best method for this due to complexity of color shading.

Classic Risa Listening

Ready to go anywhere - do anything!

Mosaic Day

Still working away at a mosaic that if  I had the time to devote exclusively  to would take a couple of weeks to finish. But time is what has been very short since last year when mom got cancer, had to go through a lot  of chemo/radiation plus other commitments.  So now I am devoting as much time as I can to finish this very cool mosaic. There are hundreds of stained glass pieces to go. I will be using a Double Reverse method of application; hence the layout on contact paper over the cement board hand painted with the logo to get it as accurate as possible.
Cement mortar is the adhesive that will be used to attach the finished mosaic to the board. No room for error - a one time deal.  Then colored cement Grout to fill in between the lines and add stability to the piece. This is for an outdoor sign to be mounted onto a gate. The outdoor grout will allow for expansion and contraction of weather heat and cold. Using the correct quality materials is what extends the life of outdoor installations. Always research the specs of materials to be used in any permanent artwork for outdoors. I have learned so much since starting mosaics.

Below are two pieces being offered in my Studio Cyber Savings. (yep, click on the words to view the sale site!). Nebula mosaic, had tinted grout, hand made box frame, signed. And an acrylic chickadee painting for springtime.
Excellent savings for original artwork  that is handcrafted by ME! Plus most of the smaller pieces offer FREE Shipping in the lower 48 USA only. If not in the states, just contact me for shipping fees.


Darn Lucky!

S.T.A.R. Academic Center Peace Garden student
public art project 02/12





Happy St. Patty's Day! Yes I am Darn Lucky and truly count my many blessings!
Here is one of the 'Blessings', another student mosaic project with STAR.
Actually, my third mosaic art youth project working with STAR Academic Center. Thanks to art educator Roberta Lewis who writes grants for the school the student have the opportunity to experience a new medium that has existed for over 5000 years. Mosaics are extremely versatile and durable when fabricated for outdoors. The students enjoy the challenge of learning the techniques and here are photos of some wonderful pieces that came from this latest project. The pieces were created for a Peace Garden to be attached to cement planters. My friend Walter Gunn volunteered his time and labor to help install the finished student mosaics. The installation is as labor intensive as the actual mosaic work! There will follow another collage of the installation.
The first mosaic project was for the school sign. Designed by the students it was a fun learning project.
The second mosaic project was an installation of stars inside the school courtyard. Hand picked students designed and mosaic ed their individual stars with a word that that empowered them. Pictures on that coming soon too! They turned out great.