"The Wholeness of Happiness,” an abstract portrait in mosaic

We’ve been so lucky to work with quite a few repeat clients. It’s an honor to be able create something special for each client in the first place. To be valued and trusted for further projects is truly a privilege.

Johannah created this piece for a couple she has worked with quite a few times. In this case, the request came from one half of the couple to create an abstract portrait of the other half as a special gift. The portrait is based on a photo of the subject wearing a red shirt and glowing with happiness to be in a place that is meaningful to them.

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Design sketch for “The Wholeness of Happiness” mosaic

The photo was taken at the seaside, and so the client requested a sense of movement to convey the motion of wind and water. Together, we decided a circle best represented the feeling of wholeness conveyed by the experience of deep joy.

The circle is red to represent the subject in their red shirt. The background is blue-green to represent the water and wind. Each field of color contains highlights of the other color to show the co-mingling of place and time and the subject’s joy.

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The Wholeness of Happiness

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Hummingbird Mosaic for a Kitchen Backsplash

A client commissioned these custom mosaics to honor a hummingbird-loving family member. They were renovating their kitchen and wanted to include this special memory in the new backsplash.

The client provided imagery of hummingbirds they associated with their family member, as well as fabric and tile samples related to the renovation. We ended up designing two different hummingbirds:

• one hummingbird in darker colors to match the inspiration image

• the other hummingbird in lighter colors to coordinate with the new kitchen.

You can see in the sketch we originally thought we’d create a green border around the hummingbird but ultimately decided to leave it off.

Hummingbird mosaic image inspiration

Hummingbird mosaic sketch

Lighter hummingbird mosaic material selection

Darker hummingbird mosaic material selection

Darker hummingbird mosaic in progress

Once the two mosaics were complete, we installed the darker one in a custom metal frame. We grouted the lighter mosaic, leaving a gap around outside edge to allow it to be installed in the new backsplash.

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You can see the lighter hummingbird installed in the backsplash below. It’s always such an honor to work on projects that are personally meaningful to the client.

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Blue Ridge Mountains Mosaics

As nature-lovers in Virginia, it’s no surprise we’re drawn to the iconic imagery of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Over the years Johannah has created a variety of mosaics featuring the mountains.

{Click or tap smaller images to enlarge.}

Though we don’t hike these beautiful mountains as often as we’d like, we do try to get there a few times a year. Every single visit is such an inspiring and mind-clearing experience. Returning to the studio after one hike, Johannah developed the idea for a larger landscape of the mountains. This mosaic would include three panels and feature the rocky outcroppings so common to the Blue Ridge.

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Humpback Rocks, photo by NPS

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Blackrock Summit, photo by NPS

The basic composition Johannah had in mind included an outcropping and a pine tree, with the mountains in the distance beyond. While some ideas come to mind fully-formed, this one took a few twists and turns as it came into being. First it took a few tries to land on a way to illustrate the pine tree she found satisfying. Later, once the mosaic seemed complete, something still felt missing. She decided a mosaic frame around the three panels would pull it all together.

Pine tree attempt #1

Pine tree attempt #2

Pine tree attempt #3, success at last!

Almost done but something's missing...

A border pulls it all together.

The resulting mosaic landscape was included in our exhibit as guest artists of the month at Crozet Artisan Depot a few years ago. What better place to display this piece than a little town nestled in the foothills of the Blue Ridge!