The House of Orpheus mosaic gets a "lifting" - Getty Museum involved

I was happy to read on Mosaic Art Now that a project has taken place in order to preserve the Orpheus mosaic in Paphos, Cyprus.

A book has also been published and it's available FREE by clicking here:
Getty Museum - Orpheus mosaic publication

Some of my favourite mosaics are the ones in Cyprus as you have seen in previous posts. They have a distinctive beauty, they are unique. Even though they were made in Roman times I would call them Cypriot mosaics considering that Cyprus was and still is a place where cultures blend (Greek world, the Phoenicians etc) thus the "Roman" impact was not as strong as it would have been in places where the Greek world had been absent. And this is purely because the "Roman" world and culture was strongly influenced by Greek art, philosophy etc. An amalgam of diverse cultures had already penetrated Cypriot culture at the time the mosaics were made.

Thank you to my friends and followers

This is a very short post to thank each one of you. 13 followers so far! I don't know what the statistics are and I know that many blogs could go up to 10.000 followers (this blog here has 10.724 followers!) but numbers is not the issue here. It's doing what your heart tells you to do and not doing it on your on. My passion for mosaics has led me to create this blog and believe me the things I would like to talk about or muse over and the images to show to you are innumerable. So I thank you all and God bless.
Right now, I am in the middle of selling a house, setting up my new workshop and dealing with different kinds of bureaucratic issues plus huge family responsibilities, but very soon I will be writing on the mosaics in Constantinople (today's Istanbul).

Is there something you would like to see or learn about on mosaics? Something you have already seen here and would like me to work on? Please drop a comment.

The mosaic pictured above is from Paphos in Cyprus.

Beads and the Queen of BEAds=BEA Valdes

This is a wonderful beaded headband that recently caught my attention. I love and insist on beads. I think it's because it's the only way to "wear mosaic" or better, mosaic-like material.
here's a close look at the bead work:

images from www.net-a-porter.com

To demonstrate the "power" of beads, here's a peek on an outstanding work with beads by - for those who have not heard about her yet - Bea Valdes....Just watch, dream, envision and get inspired or sit back and wonder how on "earth" does she do it. You can love her or hate her. She is from the Philippines and her business is based there. By the way Hollywood chic stars are drooling over her creations (apart from us ordinary people)..

Evening bags:
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Here's a stunning necklace in the hues of gray that astounds me (if the above wasn't enough!):
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Besides her own website, a wonderful place to browse her work closely is Couture Lab which features Bea Valdes.

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a glimpse on a black eye-catching necklace by Bea Valdes:

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On the cover of Vogue:
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Click here for Bea Valdes official website.

More on bib necklaces and Bea Valdes here.

You may want to read more on this blog about beads and fashion by clicking here.

Walking on a work of mosaic art - Camminando su un'opera d'arte

Chios Island Daily Photo Blog

This picture is from one of my favourite blogs on the island of Chios. It's by photographer Kostas Sidiropoulos whom I thank for his stunning pictures and for the fact that he updates his blog so often thus keeping up with the inspiration flow.

Questa immagine deriva da uno dei miei blog preferiti che riguarda l'isola di Chios. La foto è stata scattata dal fotografo Kostas Sidiropoulos che devo ringraziare per le fantastiche foto e per il fatto che aggiorna spesso il suo blog regalando cosi tanta ispirazione.

Dionysae scenes: Mosaic from Olynthos

image source

When I wrote the essential guide to mosaics post from ancient times till the late Byzantine era (I mean to write more on the historical aspect of mosaic art including lots of pictures) I wrote very few things on Olynthos. Today, I came across another mosaic from Olynthos and I am happy to publish it for my viewers. Looks almost like embroidery from a distance right? It was found in the "House of Good Fortune"and dates 432-348 BC. Adorable and captivating.

Sitting pretty ...on a beaded armchair - καθήστε άνετα...πάνω σε πολυθρόνα καλυμμένη με χάντρες

You can walk on mosaic (floors) but can you sit on mosaic?...Well, this artwork is not really a mosaic but close. An intriguing and impressive armchair made with beads. An unusual -->ethnic-like work of art.

What do you think?

Featured -->on http://specificmerchandise.com.

Μπορείτε να περπατήσετε πάνω σε ψηφιδωτά (δάπεδα) αλλά να καθήσετε πάνω σε ψηφιδωτ -->ές επιφάνειες;...Το έργο αυτό δεν είναι πραγματικό ψηφιδωτό αλλά κάτι ανάλογο. Μία πολυθρόνα καλυμμένη με χάντρες, συναρπαστική και εντυπωσιακή. Ένα ασυνήθιστο -->ethnic-περίπου έργο τέχνης. 

Τι λέτε -->; 

Από το http://specificmerchandise.com.

Seeing mosaic artists work: This video is a MUST

I'm speechless! I think I will watch this video a million times but not today because I am far too emotional right now (for coming across this video of course) and too busy and must catch up with various loose ends ....Thank you Mosaic Art Now for posting it and thank you Fotis Flevotomos.

The silver connection: Versace, Felice Nittolo, Gemstone Creative and Rockocko tiles

Versace 
Look at this detail from a fabulous Versace dress.




Which brings to mind...

Felice Nittolo
A trendsetter mosaic artist


And of course what I call a company who has carved out a very precious niche...

Gemstone Creative
A UK company making mosaics with diamonds and precious stones for your very opulent living space; in times like these it's almost uncalled for but not for the super-loaded-for-eternity guys and girls.

This one pictures Marilyn.

Diamonds are a girl's best friend or what?

(I emailed the company and they confirmed it was made with Swarovski but it can also be done, naturally with diamonds..Oh...I could become a Luxury advisor!)


But I suggest we learn to practice frugality and modesty while staying classy with...

Rockocko Custom wall tiles
Accidentally cropped up on Google and not accidentally part of this post. Rather interesting don't you think?

Mosaic + Music

Listen to this sublime and beautiful Greek Byzantine hymn in. This is a modern version by Vangelis sung by Irene Papas. Notice the gold mosaic background on the album.

May of flowers, May of showers

image source

I am saying showers because it has been raining here in Northeast Italy these past 2 days. But the mesmerising and fragrant carpet of purple flowers somewhere in Japan does the trick and lifts me up!