On the Bench !

Now that I completed Fall Foliage...

I actually got started on Mariam's eyes.

I intend to precisely document the progress of the project. Here are the first pictures of the models on their tables. 

The "regular" Mariam

 

The "regular" Mariam is the piece commissioned from France. It will be realized according to my classic reverse Method, the Mirror image is built upside down on its plastified model. 

Meshed Mariam

The "Meshed" Mariam I will build in parallel to the regular one, following the reverse method (It will also be built upside down), but for a change, I am inserting a fiberglass mesh between the model and the mosaic. This is an experiment. I have great expectations for this technique...

Mariam's Eyes - the Models

There are 3 or 4 levels of modelling for all my mosaics. One original digital image, (If the original is paper, I digitize it);  one paper original, at scale with the final mosaic, and one final model at the same size as the final mosaic.

So here are the models :  

The original reprint from scan of a French magazine. 

The Black and White model printed on heavy paper, and enhanced by hand. I used a graphic software and hand drawing to work on this picture to get to a Black and White image.

The laminated real size models. Enlarged and laminated prints at the size of the final mosaic. In this particular case, I had 2 of them made - mirror image of each other, as I will build 2 mosaics at the same time. The regular one for France, the other one as an experimentation of a different tesserae laying technique.

The Journal of Mariam's Eyes

This is the journal of Mariam's eyes.

My name is Frederic Lecut, and I am a mosaic artist. My workshop is located behind my house in Headland, a small town of Southern Alabama. I share the house with my dog Mugen, my lazy cat Pomponette, and my daughter's cat Zoya. Behind the shop live a few chickens, and you will probably hear from them along this blog.

My good friend Marie - who lives in Londinieres, France - commissioned a mosaic from me. We live one ocean apart but I still wanted her to be able to witness the birth of her mosaic, Mariam's eyes. And this is what this blog is about...

The inspiration behind Mariam's eyes

Mariam is the Arabic name of Marie, the mother of Jesus. The mosaic being of a veiled woman, I thought this name would be perfect for it.