Mosaic garden pots – Obbligato Decor
Mosaic art could be regarded as the original display of pixel like imagery and it was really prophetic for what was to come in the digital age of image creation. The innate texture in mosaic art added to its dimensionality and despite its painstaking application, it has been favoured in the creation of some truly amazing works of art.
Evidence of the first glazed tiles date back to 1500 BC from excavations at Susa and Chogha Zanbil in Iran. Around 400BC the Greeks elevated Mosaic’s to an art form when they began using small manufactured pieces made from marble, glass, terracotta and stone (“tesserae” ) that could be manipulated into artworks. Many of the dwellings of the rich at this time displayed mosaic floors of elaborate designs. During the next century Greek mosaicists became more ambitious and used more colours and detail.
Roman Mosaic at the Jewry Wall Museum
The Romans carried mosaic art further afield and soon, throughout the empire, rich villas with impressive mosaic floors were created. Typically, mosaic scenes depicted Roman subjects celebrating their gods along with domestic themes, animals and geometric designs. The expansion of the art-form occurred with the use of it by Christians to decorate the walls of churches rather than the floor.
Fragment of a floor mosaic with a personification of Ktisis- ggnyc,flickr
From the 5th century onwards, with the rise of the Byzantine Empire , the art form took on new characteristics. These included the introduction of Eastern influences in style and the use of special glass tesserae called smalti, which were manufactured in northern Italy. These were made from thick sheets of coloured glass. Smalti have a rough surface and contain tiny air bubbles. They are sometimes backed with reflective silver or gold leaf.
This lead to further expansion into the Moorish art of Spain and into the Muslim world around the Eighth Century. From the Great Mosque at Cordoba to the Basilica of Saint Mark in Venice to Westminster Cathedral, mosaic art proliferated.
The above two mosaic’s are from St. Pauls Cathedral, London
” ‘Wat Ratchabopit”’ Bangkok, Thailand
Byzantine mosaic crown, Dome of the Rock, Jerusalem
Mandala Mosaic Bowl – Bricolore
Contemporary design from mosaicworks
Mosaic Bowl – cindylaneville.com
Mosaic ceiling at the Royal Ontario Museum
“Two Fish One Heart‘” Wall Decor- Red Crow Arts
Mermaid Sirene – Tiffany glass mosaïc by Anne Bedel.
2008
Kimberly Schonfeld sculptural mosaic
Mosaic Bowl – Cindy Laneville
Cindylaneville .com
‘Eagle in flight’ – Victor Nunnally
Mosaic Bowl – Haima Design
Mosaic Clad Planter – Obbligato Decor
Victor Nunnally Mosaic-stained glass mosaic table top: ‘Table Of Prosperity’
” Sunny Day ” Mosaic Bowl-thecuriousgecko
Mosaic adaption of Gustav Klimt’s les amies
‘Nightwatch’-Mosaic Eggshell mosaic art – Linda Biggers
‘Serenade’ – Irinia Charny
Mayakovskaya Station, Moscow, Ceiling Mosaic – Deineka
St. Mark’s Basilica Mosaic Facade
Garden Meditation Mosaic Bench
Altered Universe-contemporary mosaic by Lois McKay
Abstract Vase – Irinia Charny
This stairway of 163 steps is located in San Francisco, at Moraga St. and 16th Avenue. Artists Aileen Barr and Colette Crutcher.
Ceramic Mosaic Garden Ball Lizard
Vintage French Mosaic Vase
See more at French Art Pottery
Mosaic table and lamp, Marrakesh
Impressive mosaic mandala
Olicana Mosaics
Chelsea Flower Show -Victorian Aviary Garden
‘Seascape Mosaic’ by George Fishman
Modern Mosaic Art – Jordi Labanda for SICIS
Female Red Cello Player mosiac – Irinia Charny
Mosaic of the Battle of Issus from the House of the Faun in Pompeii 1st century
‘Mother and Chid’ (The Three Ages of Woman 1905) by Emerald Dragon (Kathleen), via Flickr
Carole Choucair Oueijan
Mosaic picture ‘Burning Autumn’
artmonument.ru
Mosaic of a barn owl – Nancy Bunker
Redford Glass Studio
Christine Brallier
Public botanical mosaic – Dupont Station, Toronto
James Sutherland designed the mosaics, entitled – ‘Spadina Summer Under All Seasons’
Pink lotus eggshell mosaic – Lubets
Under water mermaid and fish mosaic panel – Sue Thompson
Zentangle Rikke Poulson
Universal Law mosaic – Brett Campbell
See another veniceclayartists article on mosaics here