Mosaic Art NOW 2010: Great Art, Inspiring Artists, Provocative Thinking

WAKEFIELD, MA.- Bill Buckingham, Nancie Mills Pipgras and Michael Welch, Editors of Mosaic Art NOW (MAN) have announced the release of the 2010 edition of the magazine. The 106-page, high quality, full color magazine is designed to promote the international understanding and appreciation of contemporary mosaics.

The highlight of this year’s MAN is the Exhibition in Print, an international, juried exhibition curated by Scott Shields, PhD., Chief Curator of the Crocker Art Museum of Sacramento, California. Said Buckingham, “Our hope is that the Exhibit will create a stronger bond between the mosaic community and the traditional art world.”

The winner of the $1,000 Best in Show Prize is Ellen Blakeley (USA) for her mosaic “Meredith”, a three-dimensional work using shattered safety glass and various surface treatments on a substrate of Live Oak tree bark

301 artists from 25 countries submitted full and detail photos of 521 fine art mosaics for consideration. Shields selected 18 works for the Exhibit, each of which was given two-page spread including full and detail photographs, an artist statement, contact information and pricing. “All of the pieces included here were made by artists — ones who have added to the mosaic tradition and pushed its boundaries, each time making abundantly evident that the art form is alive and well,” said Shields.

The winner of the $1,000 Best in Show Prize is Ellen Blakeley (USA) for her mosaic “Meredith”, a three-dimensional work using shattered safety glass and various surface treatments on a substrate of Live Oak tree bark. Shields characterized this work as “a complex and yet very subtle piece.”

Additional content includes:

• A Body of Work: Ann Gardner Acclaimed Seattle sculptor/mosaicist Ann Gardner (cover art) uses selected works from her portfolio to illustrate, in her own words, her creative process.

• Creative Capital: Laurel True A photo scrapbook of True’s inspiring work this past year at the Rudolph Steiner School in Nairobi, Kenya as part of her artist’s residency at Kitengela Glass.

• Five Sisters Vita Summa Brevis: Emma Biggs and Matthew Collings (upper left) An in-depth look at the inspiration behind this ground-breaking installation of 13th century pot sherds and painting by British mosaic artist/author Emma Biggs and her husband, artist/critic Matthew Collings, at the Cathedral at York, England.

• To Begin Again: The Orsoni Prize 2009 Italian mosaic master Lucio Orsoni talks candidly about how the winners of the 2009 round of this international competition inspired him. (lower left, Julie Richey and 2009 winner Night Shirt)

• To Work Without Fear: Yakov and Yulia Hanansen. Two generations of mosaic artists work in uniquely individual styles to celebrate the richness of human achievement.

• Discoveries: Mosaic news from Israel, Italy, Vietnam and the UK selected from postings to our blog: http:// mosaicartnow.blogspot.com

Pricing: $14.95