Monday, December 28, 2009

Vine At The Arbors Mosaic Mural Installation

The installation of this mural, "Vine At The Arbors", began on the
Winter Solstice - a very auspicious time. It marks the end of the darkness and the coming of the light - a new beginning when all things are possible. I like that!

This mural is on the outside of a community building in a new housing
development in Richmond, California.
It's made of glass and high fire tile and measures 9' x 7'.

On the first day my assistant, Saundra Warren, and I traced the
paper template of the art onto the wall.

The second day was the one I had been planning for weeks
and it went smooth as
ice!
Each piece was adhered with thinset to the wall and held in place with tape.

By the end of the second day, we had installed all the pieces.

The third day was grouting day. The worst - the VERY worst - part of this whole process for me is the taping off of this kind of intricate art. It is painstaking and there are no shortcuts - the surrounding wall must be protected! It took us three hours to complete this taping job.


Unfortunately I ran out of the grout with one square foot left to go!
Because of the Christmas holiday the grout store was closed so I had to
wait several days to totally finish.
But finish I did!
Here are some close ups:


Vine At The Arbors
9' x 7'
Glass, mirror and high fire tile
December 2009
Special thank you to Saundra Warren for her much appreciated assistance!

11 comments:

Arts Ecology said...

Such a beautiful piece, Kim. Absolutely lovely success.
Mariellen

Eleanor Parr-DiLeo said...

Wow! Looks beautiful. Great job.

Stacy Alexander said...

This one is your first true masterpiece, Kim. Consider yourself a world-class artist, my friend. There are simply no words to adequately describe the beauty and grace inherent in this piece. I am so proud of you.

Congratulations on a stunning job. Well done!

S.

Kimmy said...

Kim,This is absolutely, wonderfully beautiful!

Kim said...

Stunning job Kim!!! The design, the install - world-class indeed!

Linda Vaden-Martin said...

Kim, this is stunning! I recognize your art instantlly! Such a beautiful way to make a plain old boaring wall come to life. The painstaking task of taping really pain off, those edges look perfect! I LOVE it.

Christine Brallier said...

More happy work from you, yay! The spirals are so energetic and fun, and love the mix of tess, esp the mirror.

DoreenA said...

Hi Kim......Another wonderful mural. It is beautifully drawn out and the shading is wonderful to give life to the vine and the insects. Love the mirror and the lively feel you accomplished within this piece...Well Done!

PatsyFrancis said...

Kim,
I am in awe of your work! I really wish i could see it live...but for now, i get to stare at it here and be stunned.
I love seeing the way other artists express their ideas. Creativity has infinite possibilities but this piece just blows me away!
You have a truly distinct style and I love it!
Thanks for sharing it.
Patsy.

Cynthia Monica said...

This is just stunning Kim! Thanks for sharing the process, it is so interesting to see each step. You are an inspiration!

Unknown said...

Wow! This piece is fantastic. I've been waiting for an update after your adorable piano piece. This new piece is lovely, truly a masterpiece. Congratulations!!