GALLERY: Mosaïcs come to Melville
MELVILLE – Masa holds an exhibition of their members’ work for public viewing.
or the first time, the Mosaïc Association South Africa (Masa) presents a selection of their members’ work to the public until 9 September, from 9am – 5pm at Upstairs@Bamboo in Melville.
Mosaïc as an art form is generally accepted throughout the rest of the world, it is still relatively unknown in South Africa. The exhibition serves two purposes – first, to promote mosaïc as an art form. Second, to encourage members to push their boundaries of creativity as it is such a versatile medium.
Masa member Cher Manning insisted, “Mosaïc is basically creating a picture out of solid objects and that doesn’t limit you to ceramic or stained glass. Anything goes as long as your spacing is consistent. Many people like using odd-shaped tiles or even found art. We like adornment and creating textures or even a third dimension. Anything goes as long you are neat and consistent.”
Mosaïcists, like painters or sculptors, have artistic influences which affect the work they produce. Mosaïcists need to plan their work and draw their outlines and in some cases, the flow lines, called andamento, and in some cases, depending on the piece requires extreme patience.
Manning added the purpose of inviting the public is for mosaïcists to present themselves as artists. While previous exhibitions have been held in a member’s work space, mosaïcists tend to be a bit technical when assessing a work, as they know what the work would entail. This exhibition gives the public a chance to look at the pieces and decide if they consider it art.
The exhibition runs until 9 September at Upstairs@Bamboo, 53 Rustenburg Road, Melville.
