A few years ago I made a mosaic a little bit different from my regular, more abstract work. Once There Were Elephants was displayed in York and London in exhibitions hosted by the British Association for Modern Mosaic. It elicited several questions about how it was made. So today I’m sharing a bit more detail about the process.

The idea for this piece came from another mosaic I had made a couple of years previously, which was in turn inspired by a rhino, more specifically, the decline in their population numbers.

Estimated time to read - around 3 minutes

When people ask me what made me want to start making mosaics, I usually tell them the story of how I visited a mosaic exhibition and was inspired by the art there. However, my very first foray into making a mosaic was a few years before that, when I decided I wanted to make something for my dad’s 60th birthday. He has been a keen gardener all his life and is interested in nature conservation, particularly butterflies and moths. So I decided to make him a mosaic for the garden, based on a photo of a moth that he had taken.

Estimated time to read - around 3 minutes

I am a bit of a hoarder. I am also a bit of a magpie. These two elements are both a blessing and a curse when it comes to creating mosaic art.

When it comes to materials there are just so many things that can be used to create mosaics - I see the potential in lots of different materials, both traditional and non-traditional. As a result I keep hold of lots of things, just in case they come in useful.

Estimated time to read - under 3 minutes

How do you celebrate your successes? As a small business owner it can be hard work at times to manage everything, so when I had a successful launch of my mosaic kits a few months ago, I decided to treat myself to something to celebrate!