All posts filed under: Mosaics around the world

My Mosaic Discoveries in Berlin this summer

Published by gertrud

My “Art in Architecture” Mosaic Discoveries in Berlin in the Summer of 2026 While I was waiting for the birth of my third grandchild in Berlin, I set out to explore mosaics in the eastern part of the city. I’m familiar with the mosaics at the Haus des Lehrers and the reopened Café Moskau. This summer, I discovered two more wall mosaics at a construction site on Karl-Marx-Allee, just around the corner from my son’s family’s apartment, where I spent a lot of time this summer for the reason mentioned above. I strike up a conversation with a passerby, who also points out the mosaic fountain in the garden of the former State Council building in Berlin-Mitte. That’s how the idea for a photo walk with my friend and photographer Sabine Ohle was born. Mosaikbrunnen befindet sich im Garten des ehemaligen Staatsratsgebäudes, heutige ESMT (European School of Management and Technology), Schlossplatz 1, 10178 Berlin On a hot July morning, I meet up with Sabine to take pictures of the mosaic fountain. The garden is accessible …

Next summer – Ayvalik!

Published by gertrud

How about a vacation in Turkey in a beautiful old stone house with a mosaic floor in the bathroom? We rent out our summer house in the quaint town of Ayvalik on the North Aegean coast of Turkey. https://www.manzara-apartments.com/en/mozaikli-ev-en/# I lived in Turkey with my family 12 years ago and bought this summer house there. For me, this was a great opportunity to create a mosaic floor in the classic style. So many people were interested in it during production that I started this blog. The house is situated on a hill in the middle of the small town of Ayvalik, which has remained very unspoilt and has not yet seen much international tourism. There is a market twice a week where the whole town is filled with families from the surrounding villages and you can buy everything from fresh local vegetables, socks and underpants to hand-carved spoons made from olive wood. And not just the spoons, but of course the oil and the olives themselves, as Ayvalik is located in Turkey’s largest olive-growing region. …

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 …