Celebrating Creativity, Expression & Colour Visual Arts

A two-day mosaic event in Edinburgh: Forum topics range from the Tottenham Court Road Eduardo Paolozzi mosaicsto Byzantine Mosaics

The two-day Forum entitled, Mosaic: A Celebration of Design, Expression & Colour, will take place at the University of Edinburgh & Edinburgh College of Art on September 30 and October 1, 2107. The event is usually held in London but Joanna Kessel, who runs Edinburgh Mosaic Studio, encouraged BAMM to hold it in Scotland this year.
‘There is a wealth of publicly accessible mosaics throughout the UK and it became evident through discussions within BAMM that there was an interest in creating opportunities to celebrate these. I am delighted that we are hosting the BAMM Forum in Edinburgh and that we have been able to attract such a large number of mosaic practitioners and enthusiasts to Scotland. This will truly be a celebration of Mosaic in Scotland’ said Joanna, who exhibits her contemporary mosaics internationally and runs regular mosaic workshops from Edinburgh Mosaic Studio at Patriothall Studios in Stockbridge.
The University of Edinburgh is custodian of the fragments of the iconic Eduardo Paolozzi archway mosaic, which were salvaged during the upgrading of London’s Tottenham Court Road Tube Station; an additional reason why it seemed appropriate to hold this year’s forum in Scotland’s capital.
Two of the Forum’s speakers will talk about the Paolozzi mosaics: Christopher Smith who worked with Paolozzi in the 1980s on the creation of the Arches mosaics on the Northern Line and Liz Laumenech, Public Arts Officer at the University of Edinburgh, who will talk about future plans for the salvaged pieces.
The other four key speakers will further elaborate on mosaics:
• Scottish slate mosaic artist Dugald MacInnes, who will reveal the work of his mentor and tutor at the Glasgow School of Art, the late George Garson, whose 1970s and 80s mosaics are still among the best known public mosaics in Scotland;
• London based artist Emma Biggs, who played a key role in reviving the art of mosaics in the 1980s, who will talk about Byzantine mosaics and their influence on contemporary practitioners;
• American mosaic artist and writer, Lillian Sizemore, on trail blazing 20th century women artists who worked with mosaics and tiles
• Nathalie Vin, a mixed media mosaic artist with a focus on public art commissions, who will talk about her mosaic journey.
There will be short talks by Scottish mosaic artists Katy Galbraith, Dugald MacInnes and Helen Miles as well as by Australian Marian Shapiro.
The weekend event also includes a day of workshops where mosaic techniques and approaches will be taught. The subjects include how to make 3D mosaic substrates, using the mesh method, working with slate, a personalised mosaic tutorial, using colour in mosaics and geometry for mosaic artists. Workshops are open to everyone.

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