Looks like Kristin is making some great progress in piecing together a beautiful mosaic for ART IN THE GARDEN. It’s a fun collaboration with one of my stamped frames to contain her “mosaic magic.” Can’t wait to see it in person in Glenview on September 9th & 10th… it’s one-of-a-kind… and it might go fast!!!

Looks like Kristin Conneely has been busy working her “mosaic magic” in her studio… still working on some collaboration pieces for ART IN THE GARDEN. It’s always so cool to see how different artists re-imagine things you’ve made for years… giving them a breath of fresh air!!! Can’t wait to see the finished pieces… September 9th & 10th in Glenview!

For more info… www.grassrootsartfair.com

Stopped by Kristin Conneely’s mosaic studio the other day. I just love seeing where artists make their magic happen! Of course she’s got a beautiful assortment of colors, tiles & shards… including some amazing glass shards from our glass-fusing friend Robin Kittleson. So fun to see them sharing supplies… as we introduced them to each other during this spring’s “4×4 : Four Makers Show.” Robin has a ton of leftover shards & scraps from her amazing fused glass pieces… and it just works out perfect that Kristin uses “shards & scraps” in her mosaic masterpieces! Come see Kristin’s incredible mosaics at ART IN THE GARDEN on September 9th & 10th in Glenview!

About a year ago during ART IN THE GARDEN 2022, I gave our mosaic artist Kristin Conneely a few “parts & pieces” with a challenge for her to work her “mosaic magic” as some collaboration projects for ART IN THE GARDEN 2023. She’s had plenty of time to work on them… so I can’t wait to see what she’s done & to share some pictures with you! I’m sure they’re going to be STUNNING… because she’s pretty amazing herself!!!

Well, the Spring session of classes begin today at Lillstreet Art Center. Always fun to start a new session full of new ideas, new demos & so many possibilities. Tonight I’ll meet my Intermediate Wheel students… to find out how I can challenge them & how they will challenge me! And as they come to class tonight, they’ll also pass this wonderful “mandala” installation on the exterior of Lillstreet. Look closely… a little flashback… and you might just find one of my pieces immortalized in the bricolage mandala!

With a little extra time last night, we got to see the beautiful “Four Seasons” mosaic by Marc Chagall down in the Chase Tower Plaza in Chicago. Beautiful mosaic murals portraying life in Chicago through thousands of little tiles.

According to the Chicago Cultural Affairs website… “Composed of thousands of inlaid chips in over 250 colors, Marc Chagall’s mosaic artwork The Four Seasons portrays six scenes of Chicago. It features a vocabulary of images informed by the artist’s Russian-Jewish heritage and found in his Surrealist paintings such as birds, fish, flowers, suns and pairs of lovers. Chagall maintained, “the seasons represent human life, both physical and spiritual, at its different ages.” The design for this mosaic was created in Chagall’s studio in France, transferred onto full-scale panels and installed in Chicago with the help of a skilled mosaicist.

Chagall continued to modify his design after its arrival in Chicago, bringing up-to-date the areas containing the city’s skyline (last seen by the artist 30 years before installation) and adding pieces of native Chicago brick.”

Enjoying a little TEXTURE TUESDAY today with this beautiful & fiery glass mosaic!

My studio neighbor Karen Patinkin has been working on cleaning up her studio lately, and has gathered this wonderful collection of test tiles. I’m loving all of her slip trailings & glaze combinations on these porcelain shards… and I’m sensing perhaps a really cool mosaic piece in the making?!

Looks like mosaic artist Kristin Conneely is getting ready to bring some peace, love & happiness to ART IN THE GARDEN next weekend!!! Something we ALL need more of these days!

For more information… www.grassrootsartfair.com

When they installed a new mosaic wall behind the sinks in the new Wheelthrowing classroom at Lillstreet… my first thought was “Who’s going to clean the splattered clay off of that?”

Well, today I found out… MY SUMMER CAMPERS… that’s who!!!
Today they asked what else they could do while we were cleaning up… so I told them… and they were more than happy to oblige!