I was born into a large family of highly artistic individuals in Dublin Ireland where being able to draw and use paints was a given much like being able to ride a bicycle.
I discovered mosaic some twenty years ago while tiling a bathroom and quickly became completely absorbed in the magic I found it could create with tile and glass particularly when broken into pieces and reassembled. Having a background in engineering and design I initially found it challenging to impose my will on the hard ceramic and glass pieces. Gradually I was able to break away from the purely geometric aspect of mosaic and allow the pieces or tesserae, as they are known, to speak to me and create a type of flow that is referred to in the mosaic world as andamente. This is a movement of the interstices between tesserae that becomes the brushstroke of the mosaic artist in that it distinguishes his work from any other and sets the tone of the work. In most cases I endeavor to create a natural organic flow that eludes the predictable laws of geometry but gives emphasis to the subject material.
Historically, mosaic has been seen as a specialized craft or a form of ornamentation. Currently however, there is a strong global movement of considerable talent that is pushing the boundaries of the medium away from the simply ornate into a unique area of profound artistic expression and it is to this movement I feel primarily drawn.
I presently do public or private mosaic commissions at my Splashmosaic Studio in the Sarasota area, as well as two and three dimensional pieces in explorations of my own. I am teaching mosaic at several private and public institutions. I am a member of the Society of American Mosaic Artists. The society is committed to supporting the evolution of mosaic art into a medium for fine art expression.
Training:
Institute of Mosaic Art, in Oakland California
Luciana Notturni in Ravenna, Italy
Ringling College of Art in Sarasota
