VIDEO: Making of Mokuluas Mosaic

It was such an honor to have the opportunity to make such a stunning backsplash for my client in Kailua, Hawaii! This video shows the creation of the Mokuluas mosaic from beginning to end, but before iPhones took good pictures. ;)

Video transcript for deaf or hard of hearing:

 I’m going to take you way back to 2008 to one of the first major commissions of my professional mosaic career. I had done a couple small commissions before and finally got my website together when I got a call from an interior designer in the Bay area.

She wasn’t calling for a client, but for herself. She and her husband were building their dream home in Kailua, HI, and wanted me to make two mosaics for their home. Today I’m going to show you the making of Mokuluas, the Hawaiian art wall backsplash.

This was a new build, so since it didn’t exist yet, I received a pdf file with

elevations from the architect. There were still some variables, so I believe this is the image I sketched up with the red dots to let them know which measurements I needed to proceed.

The client sent me these two images of the Mokuluas islands. They are just around the cove from the new home they were building, but since they didn’t have a view from their property, they wanted this mosaic to bring the islands into their home. 

The client and I knew we wanted it to be slightly stylized, yet realistic, so I started first by showing her how an idea I had for the clouds, a motif that would carry through to the ocean waves. 

Then I sketched the ocean waves.

Again, the kitchen wasn’t built yet, so I put the measurements into a CAD program to create a layout to make sure the client understood the perspective.

Then the client wanted some palm leaves to frame the mosaic. There was also some talk at this time about adding a turtle. I believe I made some sketches with a turtle, but really felt it took away from the elegance of the design.

Then the builders sent me updated measurements, making the proportions slightly squarer.

This was the final design thrown into the CAD layout. 

The next step was to show the client the palette of glass I would use for the mosaic. I ordered samples of every color from a few different glass lines and pared them down to this. I spent a lot of time finding the perfect combos, so I remember being thrilled that the client immediately approved the glass.

Next I laid out the shifts of water color on the design as well as the backer board I would be working on. It would be easy with a free flowing, wavy design to get crooked or get carried away with one color and not leave enough room for all the transitions.

Then it was time to begin the construction.

I started with the palm fronds,

Then the stylized clouds 

And the pebble islands filled in by gold streaked glass to make sure they still catch the light.

I took some pictures for the client without the painter’s tape.

I need to leave some pieces of glass unattached so the panels can be screwed into the wall with washers, so as I’m working the blue tape is to hold them in place.

Now onto the water. I worked from both the bottom and top to make sure the colors and intensity of the waves would come together properly. 

Also as a note, I used white silicone for this project. I want it to be waterproof because it will be in a kitchen in a humid climate. Plus much of the glass is translucent, so using a white adhesive makes the glass bright and shiny.

I cut the mosaic into dozens of pieces and shipped the mosaic to Hawaii. The builder sent me these pics before lighting was installed in the home.

 The next year I went to Hawaii to grout the mosaic. I was busy working the whole time, but here are a couple pictures of the home and property I managed to take. 

And finally the mosaic was finished. This was right before inexpensive cameras and phone cameras started getting really good, so the pictures don’t quite show the movement of the mosaic.

 When you are in the room, because of all the shine and iridescence, the water appears to move and the homeowner reported that the colors change throughout the day.

Thank you for taking this trip back in time with me!

Mokuluas Mosaic

Dating back to 2008, this was one of my first large mosaic pieces I have done for my career. I received a call from an interior designer about a piece that she wanted for herself. She and her husband were building their dream home in Kailua, Hawaii, and they wanted for me to create a backsplash to be put in their kitchen.

Since the home was not yet built, I has asked for the measurements of all the walls surrounding the kitchen so that I knew what size I was going to create this piece to be. She also sent me two pictures of Mokulukas Islands that were located near their new home. Since they could not see the Islands from their house, so they wanted for me to create a mosaic in order to show the landscape in their own home.

The client and I knew she wanted the piece to be realistic, but also stylized, so when I began my drawing, I first started with the outline of the clouds. I created this motif drawing that would also carry through the whole piece. I then sketched the ocean waves and using the same technique. After my sketch design was created, I put the measurements into a CAD program so I could show the client and also so that way they knew the perspective that was going to be shown.

After the sketch was created, the client then decided that they wanted to add in some palm leaves. I was able to incorporate them on the sides of the piece, without taking away from the piece as a whole and the elegance of the overall design. After I added in the palm trees and sent it over to the designer, we then changed the sizing for the overall piece slightly so that it was more square and it would then fit better in the layout the client wanted.

Once everything was sketched out and placed in the CAD layout, I then showed the client the glass colors I had chosen and would be using on their mosaic. I ordered samples of lots of different colors and I also spent a lot of time picking combos of colors that I liked the best and thought that would be the best fit for the overall design. I was extremely happy when the client liked the glass colors that I had picked the first time!

After I choose the colors, I then laid out the watercolor shifts I was going to use and I put them on the backer board as well so that I knew where to follow on this specific design in order to keep it in line so it did not go all over the place. This also allowed for all the transitions of colors and so that one color would not get taken over by another color.

Finally it was time to begin the piece and I first started with the palm leaves and then I worked my way to clouds and then the Mokulukas islands using both glass and stone so that they would stand out in the piece.

Next up was creating the water. I made sure to work from both the top and the bottom to make sure the colors and the intensity of the waves would show through as well as come together properly and not look out of place. For this project, I also used some white silicone as an adhesive because it will be located in a kitchen so I wanted to make sure that it was going to be waterproof. A white adhesive is also helpful when glass is translucent because it makes it brighter and shiny too.

When the piece was complete, I cut it into dozens of pieces and then had it shipped to Hawaii for the client. The builder then had sent me photos of it being installed into the home and a year later I got to go to Hawaii to grout the mosaic. Even though I was there for work, I got to see their property and I even got to see the Mokulukas Islands in person that I had created for the client.

When you view the mosaic, the water and clouds appear to move because of all the lights and iridescent colors that I used, however pictures do not do it justice since this piece was in 2008, before quality phone cameras were invented. The client even stated that the colors change throughout the day too!

Ombre Mosaic Fireplace

I loved making this mosaic so much! The subtle color changes and wide variety of tessera made this fireplace a work of art.

It was such a pleasure to make this mosaic fireplace for this delightful client in Akron, Ohio. She had a wonderful eye for color, design, and theme. It’s wonderful to work with someone that knows what she wants, but is open to different ideas.

The client came with images and the concept when I visited her home to see her aesthetic, and then I sketched up some ideas. We landed on this sketch to begin the process.

She then came to my studio to choose from a huge variety of glass options. She quickly picked what she did and did not want to use in the creation. It was a tough decision to go as dark, and with heavier materials at the bottom, but I really felt it would ground the mosaic to make the design pop and make the upper half more ethereal. I’m so glad she chose to go with it, and she’s very happy with the outcome, so I think it was the right move! This is my favorite mosaic I’ve made because I love when the complicated bits and decisions of making a mosaic come together in such a unified, flowing, elegant design.