When visualizing a project preparation is the key. I have to give an idea time to mature in my mind. I usually ask the 5 W questions: who, what, where, when, and why?

 

Who is the piece for, what is it’s purpose, where will it be displayed, when is it to be completed, and why are we doing the piece?  Once these decisions are made then the design process begins.

 

First, I create the substrate/base or the window frame depending on the glass medium.

 

Second, cartoons might be drawn out and redrawn then enlarged to scale. Once the design is transferred to the substrate and worktable, the materials are organized and the fabrication begins. My abstract mosaics are typically designed free form without a specific pattern except what I see in my head and what God has allowed me to create.

 

The materials used for mosaic's are hand cut and nipped. Each piece is individually placed like putting together a puzzle. Each piece is then glued or applied into thin set or mastic. A grout may or may not be used.

 

I often times finish a mosaic with a table top resin that provides another dimension of elegance and beauty to my work. The piece will take on the illusion of kilned formed glass creating a glowing panel that is magical.