mosaic

Large Roman Micromosaic Up For Auction

Filed under: Art

Auction Central News drew my attention to a stunning micromosaic that is being auctioned off by Myers Auction Gallery in St. Petersburg, Florida as part of their January 30 European & Asian Antiques auction.

The massive piece is 32 by 59 inches and weighs more than 100 pounds. The piece is attributed to master mosaicist Cesare Roccheggiani, who was active at the Vatican workshops from 1856 to 1864. These micro mosaics were just part of the massive industry of selling art to tourists embarking on their Grand Tour of Europe but most were far smaller than this one. The piece depicts the ancient Roman Forum and since the 1920s this piece has been in the home of a Tampa businessman. When the home was sold in the 1980s, the new owners purchased the piece but now the estate artwork is up for sale.

This piece is unsigned but bears a striking resemblance to a signed work of very similar size and subject that sold at Christie's London in December for £337,250 ($533,192) against an estimate of £100,000 - £200,000. The Auction Central News article quotes Michael Myers, founder and co-owner of Myers Auction Gallery who says that his firm believes that although unsigned it is "almost certainly the work of Roccheggiani."

It is being offered with a $100,000-$200,000 estimate. Internet live bidding will be provided by LiveAuctioneers.com. Check out detailed images of this extraordinary piece here.

Tags: art, auction, micromosaic, mosaic, myers auction gallery

Mad about Mosaics

by Bobbie Leigh (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Decor, Art

When artist Sybil Sage made one of her mosaic vases for food writer Ruth Reichl, she did her homework. Many of the picture frames, planters, candlestick holders, lamps and vases Sage designs are customized to reflect the person who will display it. For Reichl's vase, she nipped shards from plates with pictures of vintage food-can labels. For a well-known flutist, she found antique French opera plates, The mosaic style Sage uses is called "pique assiette" which loosely translates as "broken plate." But Sage's work is far from traditional.

Tags: broken plate mosaic, holiday gift ideas, holiday gifts, mosaic, mosaics, sybil sage, vases

Continue reading “Mad about Mosaics”

Commission A Portrait in Gems

by Deb West (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Art

To be filed under bling with a capital B or even lite-brite gone luxe; Gemstone Creative has come up with a concept to provide bespoke mosaic artwork to those who have cash to burn.

To be fair, the art of making mosaics has been around for centuries and has always had a tradition of patron sponsorship. Taking their inspiration from the Moors, the Mughai Emperors and the powerful Byzantines, whose completed mosaics often contained precious stones and gold leaf, Gemstone Creative's bejeweled mosaic concept does not seem quite so outlandish. The roots of the idea can be found in historic practices around the globe.

The London based company is the brainchild of Mark Hirschel and Sarah Stultman who have assembled talented individuals in the fields of mosaic art and jewelry setting to be able to bring this unique concept to the marketplace. The artists including, Adrian Firth, Tessa Hunkin and Claire Milner are classically trained, have their art in private collections and in international shows such as the London Art Fair. The pieces can be fashioned from diamonds of various colors, rubies, emeralds, sapphires as well as a selection of semi-precious stones such as peridot, and amethysts. They make a promise to consumers to use only ethically sourced stones in their mosaics. For the most part, if you can dream it up the artists can make it happen, although the company does need to be able to acquire the correct volume of stones for your piece.

So how much does all of this cost? Well it does depend on the size of the piece, as well as the market price of the stones and setting you choose. As an example, an 8inch x 8inch piece will contain at least 2,600 stones while a larger piece measuring 24inch x 24inch would contain over 22,000 individual stones. As an estimate one can figure on the smaller portraits starting at £25,000 and easily surpassing the £1 million mark if a piece is made entirely of diamonds and set in platinum. It is no wonder the company states in its press release that the portraits are the "ultimate luxury possession".

If your pockets aren't as deep and you like the concept they will also make pieces out of Swarovski Crystals that start at a much more reasonable £2,750.

Gallery: Gemstone Creative

Tags: Adrian Firth, AdrianFirth, Bejeweled, diamond art, DiamondArt, diamonds, Gemstone Creative, GemstoneCreative, mosaic, swarovski crystals, SwarovskiCrystals

Rialto Dinnerware

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Dining

Solid white dinnerware is no longer the top choice of those who treat entertaining as a second job. This season, black and white dinnerware the way to go. The contrast is more dramatic than solid white and designers have taken advantage of this by using less traditional patterns. The Rialto Dinnerware collection is black and white Limoges porcelain with elegant, geometric patterns that are similar to those mosaic tiles found in Spain. Each piece of the set, including the cup/saucer pair, is sold in sets of four with the exception of the chargers, which are sold individually. All are available at Neiman Marcus.

Source

Tags: dining, dinnerware, limoges, mosaic, plate, plates, porcelain, spanish

Mosaic at Blue

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Estates

Mosaic at Blue, the planned co-tel at the Village at Blue Mountain, a resort 90 minutes from Toronto will be the site of the first branded spa from Intrawest, the developer of destination resorts. The spa will cater to skiers who will be able to take off their ski togs, put on their robes and head to the spa to have those sore muscles immediately attended to. The 5,000 square-foot spa will have its own heated swimming pool, a lap pool, all-season hot tub and a fitness center. The first phase of Mosaic at Blue goes on sale next month. The units start at around $200,000 and owners can put their units into rental programs or exchange time at other Intrawest resorts. There are 20 different floor plans from basic studios to three bedrooms and the suites will have gas fireplaces, balconies or terraces, and will be fully furnished down to the linens and cutlery. They are expected to be ready for occupancy in June 2007.

[via The Globe and Mail]

Source

Tags: blue mountain, intrawest, mosaic, ski resort