First Project - Fireplace

Hello again, this morning it is a little cold and I need to wait for the studio to heat up some before I can get to work. So, I decided to take a few minutes to start talking about the project I am working on right now. I am actually under a time crunch, so I will be spending some dedicated time on it and it will seem to come together pretty fast. My tentative deadline is to install next weekend! Yikes! We will both know if that is even a remote possibility after this weekend.

The Project: Mosaic a fireplace enclosure. I have done two other projects for this client and really love working for them. They give me all kinds of artistic license and love my ideas. Their house is also very interesting and color filled, so I am really free to "go wild." Here is a picture of the fireplace enclosure "before" we got started.

It is a three sided fireplace enclosure. Here is also a picture to give you an idea of the space.

As you can see the space is contemporary with many colors and textures being used.

The Idea: My initial inclination for this project was that it needed to have curves and possibly a large arc above the fireplace opening, and that the mosaic needed to flow from the face of the fireplace enclosure to the other surfaces. But other than that, I was really a ship adrift. I tried several ideas stealing shapes and colors from the room, but felt the project needed more meaning than just a replication of other forms in the room. So, I restarted the process using the theme of "the hearth is the center of the home." And how best to represent center but with a circle. The circle then turned into a "target" that got a little "twisted." I felt the space called for something a little off kilter. I then added the intersection through the heart of the target as a focal point and to add interest. Here are pictures of the project as I proposed it to the client.

The most challenging part of this project has been drawing it in a way that communicates what I am envisioning. I could see it in my head but it was so complicated on paper that I couldn't get my brain around it. Ultimately, I had to put together a scale model. Not only to show the client the complete idea, but also just to figure out how the circle would flow from one surface to the other.

Materials: MY material of choice is broken dishes. In the previous projects I had used in addition to the dishes some Royal Mosa tile. Royal Mosa is a dream to work with and comes is a multitude of wonderful bright colors. I chose to add the tile because one of the projects was a floor and I needed a smoother surface than I usually construct with the dishes. For this project I plan to use the dishes and tile mixed and "crazy paved" (various shapes puzzled together without a specific pattern). In the areas that show silver I proposed mirror. I felt that it was a good material to use to replicate some of the colors and textures in the room, but also see the reflection of mirror as an opportunity to "reflect" the character of the people using the space. In the areas appearing silver with color, the customer and I chose to use Trend Karma, a silver backed colored glass tile. So, in addition to the change of color happening at the intersection of the circles, there will also be a large circle/sphere of reflective materials cutting through the composition.

Like I said earlier, what I envisioned was very complex and the first challenge was to communicate it. NOW, I need to building. So, off to the studio I go. I will get you caught up on the process as I can over the next couple of days.