|
Forget
bathroom tiling, ancient roman flooring and decorative swimming
pools The Inspirations Exhibition will have you rethinking the ancient
art of mosaics when it hits Salisbury next month.
It's very contemporary, very organic and very, very modern and it's
all the work of local mosaicist Robert Field.
Robert,
a founding member of the British Association for Modern Mosaic,
started off his career as an artist.
 |
| Torso
Chiaroscuro |
But
a stint travelling the ancient Roman world, studying, snapping and
recreating archaeological sites, soon had him turning his attentions
to mosaics. Since then he has become a strong advocater of mosaic
as an ideal medium to unleash creativity:
"Mosaic
has opened up to me a new medium for artistic expression.
"It's
a medium which effectively allows artists to form images in a way
that expresses and enhances their own artistic vision."
For Robert
mosaic has certainly proved to be all that... and his artistic visions
are quite simply intriguing.
Working
completely in unglazed ceramic, Robert's contemporary interpretations
and archaeological inspired works abound in flat surfaces but are
themselves never flat.
 |
| Shaped
by the Sea |
Playing
on the surface of the medium the works are compelling:
"Although I deeply admire the results other artists achieve with light-reflecting
smalti and marble in their work," he says "my own artistic needs are
met for the moment by using, for the most part, unglazed ceramic.
"With these I can cover my full creative range be it abstract,
naturalistic, geometric or replicas."
Only in 'Maseolithic Skeleton' has Robert been tempted to counteract
the physical flatness and delve into the illusion of depth and perspective.
Overall Robert's works are a fascinating and diverse mix and the
pieces pulled for the Inspirations Exhibition reflect this. Modern
abstracts rub shoulders with more naturalistic forms and even the
artist's tabby cats make cameo appearances immortalised in mosaic.
For
Assistant Curator, Jane Standen, the exhibition is a great compliment
to the gallery's own mosaic:
 |
| Mazeolithic
skeleton |
"We jumped
at the chance to host an exhibition of Bob's ingenious and beautiful
mosaics, particularly with their historical and artistic links to
our own mosaic from Downton, which is on display in the archaeology
gallery".
Running from Saturday 3rd April through to Saturday 26th
June 2004 the exhibition is accompanied by a series of talks.
On Tuesday 13, April Steve Cosh, a renowned authority, will be giving
a talk on Romano-British mosaics in the South-West whilst on Wednesday
2 June Robert Field will give a lecture on Modern Mosaic.
All in all the Inspirations Exhibition looks set to change attitudes.
It's time, it seems, for mosaics to come out of the craft closet and
into the world of fine art.
|
INSPIRATIONS
2004
EXHIBITION of MOSAICS
by ROBERT FIELD
|
| Gallery: |
Salisbury and South Wiltshire Museum
The King's House
65 The Close
Salisbury
Wiltshire
SP1 2EN
|
| Dates: |
Saturday
3rd April - Saturday 26th June 2004 |
| Gallery: |
Wiltshire
Heritage Museum
41 Long Street
Devizes
Wiltshire
SN10 1NS |
| Dates: |
Saturday
2nd July - Saturday 28th August 2004 |
| Opening
Times : |
Monday
to Saturday
10.00am till 5.00pm. |
Add
your comment
precious
i love mosaics!!!!!!!(:
Jasmine
Can u make mosaic?
Janice Hills
What an amazing exhibition. Enhanced by the artists notes, photographs and catalogue. Thank you
|
More
