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Interview with mosaic artist,
Christina Macaulay continued.
Vines Birdbath- Image provided with permission of artist
What benefits have you found the internet has for
your art and your business?
It is a wonderful thing the internet, but I think it is important to remember
that not everyone has access or is skilled in finding out things from
the internet. I know my workshops virtually fill themselves just by exposure
through the website, I do a bit of other promotion and I have a newsletter
that I send out intermittently to remind people of what is on offer with
both the workshops and the tours. Commissions also come via the internet,
but also through recommendations from past clients. Cold callers can be
referred to the internet site to get more info about my work, so it is
an instant way that you can expose your work to people. I find the cost
in both time and money of keeping the website current often overwhelms
me and in fact many of my new works are not shown on the website, but
I am working on that……soon….I hope!! But I certainly
think that artists with a web presence do attract more work than those
without.
What are two tools that you could not live without?
My Leponnit Wheel Cutters and my Ravenna Tweezers, specially designed
for mosaic artists and not available here. But I brought a big batch back
with me which students are very grateful for!
Are there any safety issues to deal with in your work? If so what measures
do you take to deal with these?
Lots! You are cutting glass, and care needs to be taken with shards, dust
and sharp edges. Regular sweeping up with a dustpan and brush is highly
recommended and a pair of latex gloves will help protect hands but it
is such a tactile art and I love to get the feel of my materials. I insist
students wear safety glasses in the workshops, they are more at risk from
the tile cutting of their classmates than their own cutting. The grout
powder is nasty stuff to get on your skin or to breath in so again latex
gloves and a mask are a good idea when touching these products.
Can you outline the general process behind making something like the
Butterfly Bowl Mosaic on your website?
One of the things I learnt early in my mosaicing career is that there
are adhesives and there are adhesives. For a mosaic that is going to be
outdoors or holding water, as with the butterfly bowl, it is necessary
to use a two part latex based adhesive. Also, the substrate (which is
the surface that you mosaic onto) for that bowl was a porous terracotta
bowl so that had to be treated with a waterproof membrane, then the adhesive
to stick tiles on had to be one that could withstand long term water immersion
which is the one I have referred to above. Those were probably the two
key technical things with that piece of work. The little butterflies were
constructed in the reverse method, which means I used a template to construct
the butterfly images upside down on a sticky paper known as mosaic mount,
it is kind of like a very heavy contact paper. Once the emblem (main picture/s)
is constructed in reverse, it gets turned over and adhered in place, when
the adhesive dries, you pull back the sticky paper and your mosaic work
face up is adhered in place with a nice even surface (good for making
tables too). However the vines birdbath pictured above was constructed
completely in the direct method.
Images provided with permission of artist
How long does it typically take to make something
like that?
When I first started that would have taken me a couple of weeks I suppose,
but now I would complete a piece like this in a few days. It is always
hard to stay because different designs and laying styles will present
different challenges and times can vary considerably
Where do you generally buy supplies? Locally or by
ordering them?
From EVERYWHERE! I use a very good internet supplier here in Australia
for smaller quantities of glass and porcelain tile, but if I need very
large quantities I will order from a tile shop as it is much much cheaper.
Smalti I try to grab what I can whenever I am in Italy, there is a great
US supplier for the Mexican smalti which I use in a lot of my work. Stained
glass can be bought in smaller sheet sizes at most stained glass suppliers
of which there are several in Sydney and once you get some mastery with
cutting this (you need a glass scorer and running pliers to cut sheet
glass), it can be a very good material if you want to get a wide colour
palate. Metal bits are just the luck of finding them when I am out scavenging
in all sorts of art and craft and second hand shops and hardware suppliers.
I do keep some stock of supplies at the studio to assist students with
their projects, but I really don’t want to turn into a shop as much
as many students would like me to, I just don’t have the time but
I will always try to assist if people need materials. In terms of other
supplies to complement mosaic works, I have a wonderful guy down the coast
who constructs custom made wrought iron tables for me and students often
order them and he supplies me for commission projects as well.
Are there any business problems that you consider are unique to an
art or craft business?
I am always amused at the assumption that artists are in it from a business
perspective! I mean by default I guess we have to be, but I spent many
years with a focus on business oriented outcomes in a past life career.
I just want to focus on the art, there is a real tension between the rampant
right brain of my artist and the logical left brain of my business person.
I truly resent ever having to step into the left brain persona, so I guess
that is a problem!
What are the different kinds of outlets you use to
sell your work?
I used to do Paddington Market and it was great but I found myself producing
for the market and found it restricted me expanding into larger works
so I tend not to do those kinds of outlets anymore, I think my work has
now outgrown that approach. I have a couple of shops and galleries who
carry some pieces and of course I sell direct from my own studio as well,
but I do ask that people make an appointment for a studio visit. The Lennox
Street studios in Newtown, where I am located, house a community of about
40 artists and each year we have an exhibition over two weekends in November.
I am also exhibiting next year in a joint show with a colleague. I have
exhibited works at the Mosaic Association shows, they are on every 2 years.
Other exhibition opportunities come and go and sometimes I put pieces
forward for those. The mosaic association of Australia is providing a
fantastic resource to get its members connected to exhibiting opportunities.
Over recent times all my mosaicing has been committed to commission works
and so far this year it has been difficult to create pieces for exhibition.
It is an area that I would like to give more attention to in the coming
year though. .
Images provided with permission of artist
Is there a typical process that you follow when asked
to do a private commission?
Yes I am quite structured in my approach to how I negotiate a commission.
I always where possible like to do a site visit, this is a very important
part in my process as I like to visually absorb the environment where
a piece is to sit and it is also important to get a feel for the people
who will be the ultimate owners of the work. If it were something small
like decorative elements for inclusion in bathrooms I would work to a
brief with photos, but most of my works have been of a larger art work
style.
So after that preliminary visit, I go away and prepare some design sketches
and put together some samples of possible materials for the project. At
the second meeting it is usually possible to agree on a design concept,
size of work, materials to be used. At this stage I request a design fee
and more detailed drawings are prepared, often accompanied with a sample
piece to demonstrate how materials will be used in the execution of the
design. Once the design is agreed I quote in full for the job and if the
client wishes to proceed, they pay a deposit, this payment usually covers
cost of all my materials for the job and the balance is due on delivery
of the work. I am happy for clients to visit the studio to see progress
if they feel they want to or need to, but my experience is that people
are satisfied once the design concept and materials are agreed, to let
me go away and create the work. Sometimes I will provide a progress image
to a client. I did this with the “Tree of Life” mosaic and,
the clients were thrilled to see the work in progress shot and the feedback
really reinforced my sense that the work was on track with their expectations.
If I have evolving ideas as I produce the work and they are varying too
much from original ideas I of course consult with the client, but my experience
to date, is that clients are happy to give me a great deal of creative
freedom within the parameters of the original brief. I find producing
works for private clients to be installed in their homes very satisfying.
It has been a very rewarding element to the many threads I pull together
in practicing my art.
What are some interesting places to which you have travelled related
to mosaic?
Where do I begin? Tunisia is a well kept secret; the quality of the mosaic
works is astounding. Many many Roman mosaics can be found in museums and
in situ, but with a distinct North African style. I was in awe on a daily
basis in my journeying through Tunisia. I have been all over Italy observing
mosaic works, both ancient and contemporary. The wonderful Byzantine mosaics
of Ravenna in Italy are a must see and there are many fine examples of
mosaic works at almost every turn in Rome and in ancient sites like Ostia
Antica which is just a short train ride from the centre of Rome. I have
visited the Mosaic Studio at the Vatican in Rome and seen mosaicists at
work using the traditional methods. I have also been to the Orsoni compound
in Venice and seen first hand the making of the wonderful Italian smalti.
The Orsoni family have been making this wonderful mosaic material for
three generations now and are considered the true masters in the production
of Italian smalti. The original furnaces are still in use. In southern
Italy, Naples Pompeii and Herculaneum are wonderful sites and Sicily is
rich in mosaics, many with a strong Arabic influence. I lived and worked
in Barcelona for a time, and was surrounded by the works of Gaudi and
others, he wasn’t the only one who produced stunning mosaic works
in that city. Also, don’t underestimate the number of mosaics, both
ancient and contemporary works, in the UK, there are many. There are several
Roman sites throughout the UK with well preserved works in situ. Emma
Biggs whose workshop I attended in her London Studio a few years back
now has produced many contemporary works throughout the UK. There are
some great works at Canary Wharf in central London that were created by
Emma. As a result of all of this exploring and a great passion for travel,
I am now taking people on tours in Europe on the basis of my own extensive
research and travel experiences. I have also compiled a couple of lovely
local itineraries that show people some little know mosaics right here
in Sydney, and also in Canberra and in Melbourne. It is really quite surprising
just how many wonderful mosaics we have here in Australia.
You can also book
a class with Christina by clicking
here!
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