This summer I was asked to make a mosaic for a couple’s Golden Wedding Anniversary to place on a tree in their woodland garden. The brief was “something fairly abstract, with a suggestion of plants and flowing water and using reds, oranges, golds and magenta’s, the size to be about 120m x 50cm” It was important to my client that I was able to interpret it how I wished.

Together with my clients I was able to find out the type of mosaic styles they liked. I was pleased that they liked the idea of different shapes and materials .

Incorporating all these design elements I made a coloured sketch that they liked and accepted.

Gathering materials was easy as I have a good collection of hot colours as they are my favourite colours to work with (but you already knew that)!

I bought some fossils and some agate

I decided to make this one on mesh so I would have a chance to change it if it wasn’t working. (Very glad I did too as I had to rework sections a couple of times) If I made it straight onto the cement board it would be very hard to remove.

You see that piece of purple pink agate? I eventually replaced it with a golden brown piece as the purple was too strong a colour and was distracting to the eye.

What was good about this commission was that I had loads of time, so I could work on other pieces in between, I could work on it when I felt like it rather than in a shorter time frame which can make me feel pressured.

It is quite a textural mosaic. The centre of the frond rises in smalti steps to the fossil in the centre.

Tempting not to grout, but as it’s for outside, the grout will help strengthen  the whole mosaic, and it will be easier to clean out any unwanted debris.

The mosaic is made on light weight cement board (2 sheets cemented together for strength) and backed with treated wooden slats. There are heavy duty staples fixed to the slats for rope to run through and hold it to the tree.

Details…

Delighted clients.

I loved making this piece, it was a real pleasure!

🙂