In the words of Dr. Johnny Fever: Hello fellow babies!
Yes, it’s been more than two years since I’ve been the least bit mosaic-y. It’s been so long since I even made a blog post that the platform has changed and I don’t recognize this font. Okay, it’s fine now.
In January 2022, I discovered that I had a well-developed ascending aortic aneurysm. The only way to repair it was with open heart surgery. I was able to get into the Cleveland Clinic for said surgery in late March. I had an excellent surgeon and he repaired the aneurysm and replaced my aortic valve successfully. Although my recovery was seriously hampered by a back issue, most likely a result of positioning during surgery, and also by the temporary development of Afib three weeks after surgery, I was doing very well around five to six months post surgery.
Needless to say, I was not at all focused on getting back into the studio. I began a walking discipline that became a serious practice, starting with 8 - 10 miles a day and increased to 15 - 17 miles a day. I have since eased off and am now walking 5 - 10 miles a day, and I find myself missing working in my studio.
Earlier this year, we renovated our kitchen with new furniture, lighting, countertops and backsplashes, and painted our 25+ year old cabinets. There is a particular wall area for which I decided to make a mosaic (Kitchen Mosaic Miss, above left). Nothing artsy, just decorative to go with the kitchen. This was my first mosaic in more than two years. The green smalti is very close to the cabinet color, and the soft gold matches the new hardware pulls. I worked very loosely and really enjoyed making it. My intention was for it to be random with no pattern.
Well, it ended up too random for my taste and the marbles were not quite right. So, I made another one (Equanimity, above right). I intended for it to be similar to the first one but, as I got into it, I went a more artsy direction. It ended up not being strictly decorative. I was dealing with some challenging family stuff at the time and my kitchen mosaic became Equanimity. Again, I worked very loosely and really enjoyed making it.
During what has been my two+ year hiatus from mosaic, I often questioned whether I was just finished with mosaic. I was horrified at the idea but primarily because of all the mosaic stuff that I have acquired in the last 25+ years. Although I thought I could be finished at times, more often I genuinely felt that I wasn’t, that I would get back to it, in some way, at some time.
Now, here I am, working in my studio, on a piece I started almost three years ago. Hmm… let’s see…