Friday, January 10, 2014

Not your average Mosaic


Mosaic Art





 While traveling to Florence, Italy last October I visited the mosaic studio of the Lastrucci family, where two gentlemen toiled away creating art like I had never experienced before! They welcomed us in and told us of their process and how, sadly, their children today are not interested in continuing their craft.  Mosaic dates back to the Greeks and Romans of the 3rd Century BC! The tools in the modern studio were very rudimentary and I loved watching them cut the stone with a wire hand saw.

First they gather semiprecious stones from all over the world.




 They create a drawing and then make a pattern (like paint by number). They cut out each shape and glue it to the piece of stone and then cut around the paper to yield the exact shape they need. Some hand filing is involved to get them all to fit precisely.




They carve out depressions in a flat piece of stone and drip hot beeswax in the recessed areas where they will set each mosaic piece.



I was honored to be in the Lastrucci studio in Florence to experience this fine art firsthand.
I will never think of mosaic as only lining the bottom of swimming pools again!








13 comments:

  1. This is absolutely amazing! We are in the process of planning our trip and Florence is on our list.

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    1. Rene, I will be in touch if you want any suggestions for must-see places!

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  2. So cool and so intricate! How fun that you enjoyed the pleasure of visiting the studio!

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  3. This is truly an art. I could study these for the longest time. I love reading about old world craftsmanship. I can see how you would have loved visiting the studio. Really cool.

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  4. These are beautiful ... I hate that this is a dying art ... I feel like real craftsman art is dying because we are a "throw away" society. We want things NOW and CHEAP! Makes me sad. xo

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  5. Wow, I too have never seen mosaics as beautiful as these before! You were indeed lucky to witness the process firsthand!

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  6. What a talent to be able to do that. And so cool that you got to see them in action!

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  7. What an experience you had! I've never seen such a beautiful mosaic. Incredible.

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  8. Oh my gosh!! You know I would have died!!
    LOVE!
    Teresa
    xoxo

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  9. Hi Nancy, I posted a comment earlier but I am not sure if it went through. Sorry if I am repeating myself! It is SO cool you could visit the mosaic artist and see how he creates the mosaics. I was awed by the beauty of the mosaics in Italy - particularly the micro-mosaics. What an amazing experience for you!

    Have a wonderful rest of your weekend! xoxo

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  10. This is A MAZE ING! I've been part of a mosaics class for a little over a year now and it is a difficult art. What a gift being able to visit and meet this family!

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