All posts filed under: Mosaics around the world

A reunion with Jack Whitten

Published by gertrud

Reunion with Jack Whitten – A retrospective at MoMA, New York A few years ago, I had the opportunity to see Jack Whitten’s works for the first time at the Hamburger Bahnhof in Berlin. At the time, it was a real surprise for me to discover his mosaic paintings. I was particularly fascinated by how he integrated the mosaic technique from Greece into his paintings after a stay there. Even back then, I was impressed by his unique method of making the mosaic tiles himself from dried acrylic paint – a creative and elaborate technique that gives his works a special depth and structure. In April 2025, I had the opportunity to experience Whitten’s works again in a comprehensive retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York. The exhibition gave me new insights into his working methods. It was particularly exciting to learn that his fascination with acrylic paint is partly due to the fact that this medium only emerged in the 1970s – a time in which Whitten worked with it …

…. And a Magic Garden in Philadelphia

Published by gertrud

Visiting friends and relatives in the USA is always a good opportunity to discover with them the mosaic treasures of their place. This time I went to visit my nephew Cornelius in Philadelphia where he is doing a gap year for Action Reconciliation Service for Peace in a social project that cares for immigrants in Camden near Philadelphia. He was happy to tag along a tour of mosaics in Philli. First we visited the “Dream Garden” (see previous blog) and then went on to the “Magic Garden” of this otherwise very urban city centre full of beautiful art deco and newer buildings. https://www.phillymagicgardens.org/about-philadelphias-magic-gardens/themes/ Magic Garden is a life long project of Isaiah Zagar who used the work initially as therapy from a mental break down. The Magic Garden is a project classified under the term “ Art environment”. It’s now a foundation and we could even join a tour of this crazily busy mosaic project. What drew my attention? I am interested in grout lines (the interstices between the mosaic pieces) and how to use …

Dream of a Garden in in Philadelphia

Published by gertrud

Born in Philadelphia and educated at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Maxfield Parrish is best known for his idyllic landscapes and storybook illustrations. Parrish served on a committee convened by Cyrus Curtis and Edward W. Bok of the Curts Publishing Company to commission a mural for the lobby of their spectacular new building. After the first three artists chosen to paint the mural died, Parrish was asked to develop the design. At the same time, Bok decided that the mural would be executed by Tiffany Studios as a glass mosaic. The mural was to be fifteen by forty-nine feet, and would embody the publisher’s desire to make art accessible to a wide public. Parrish’s design was inspired by the real gardens he had built at his summer home, The Oaks, in Cornish, New Hampshire. The artist envisioned fantastical spaces where a visitor would chance upon places of tremendous beauty and solitude, improved by careful placement of foliage and flowers, large classical us, reflecting pools and fountains, walkways and steps. The masks in the …