I Think the First One’s a Chicken

By: ornamento.blog
Art, Isaiah Zagar, mosaics, Philadelphia, Public Art, South Philadelphia, South Philly, , Leave a Comment on I Think the First One’s a Chicken

 I have posted before about the work of Isaiah Zagar’s walls and his Magic Garden.  You don’t always have the good fortune to see a work in progress but that’s what happened to me during a walk in my neighborhood.    I stumbled on what appears to be the latest installation in the neighborhood.

Here’s a photo of a work around the corner to give you a general idea of Zagar’s work.  You can never tell how something like this will turn out though.  It looks like a few of the pictures might be portraits including one of the artist, and I think one of the figures in the first picture is a chicken.  Will it remain a chicken?  I will post pictures of the finished wall when its done

Enjoy this cool video

Make Mine Mosaic

By: ornamento.blog
Altered Art, Art, art from recycled materials, art, creativity, crafts, inspiration, glass, Hand Made, inspiration, Isaiah Zagar, lampwork, mixed media, Personal History, problem solving, recycling, repurposing, stained glass, Tile, Whimsical, , , , 1 Comment on Make Mine Mosaic

My latest project is covering the countertop between my dining room and kitchen with a tile mosaic. I cut lots of glass tiles, tumbled some to get a matte finish and left the others shiny. I have plenty of cut up ceramic tiles, dishes, glass baubles, some fusing failures that still look pretty, lampworked beads that cracked in half before annealing and a bunch of mirror tiles I cut. I got sand colored grout because I thought white would be boring. Much like when I got married, I don’t have a plan. I will wing it and see that I get. I’ll post pix here when I’m finished. Wish me luck!

Dear Fleisher

By: ornamento.blog
Art, art, creativity, crafts, inspiration, Burnell Yow!, Community Art Groups, David Brewster, Dear Fleisher, Design, Eliza Auth, Fleisher Art Memorial, Isaiah Zagar, Jill Bonovitz, Materials, Personal History, Philadelphia, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Polymer Clay, Signe Wilkinson, South Philadelphia, South Philly, Uncategorized, Urban, Urban LandscapeLeave a Comment on Dear Fleisher

Dear Fleisher, 4 X 6 Inches of Art is the Fleisher Art Memorial’s biennial exhibition and sale of original artwork. The invitational exhibit features postcard sized (4″x6″) art in a wide range of media. Each piece is signed on the back to preserve the artist’s anonymity and sold for $50.00. I heard Fleisher raised almost $55,000 this year.

Some of the more than 150 contributing artists this year were Jill Bonovitz, Burnell Yow!, Signe Wilkinson, David Brewster, Isaiah Zagar, and Eliza Auth.

I was asked to participate in the last two exhibits and have chosen to work in polymer clay. Here are my pieces from 2006 (left) and 2008 (right). The Fleisher Art Memorial is a neighborhood and City treasure to which I am glad to contribute.

Isaiah Zagar’s Walls

By: ornamento.blog
Art, art from recycled materials, art, creativity, crafts, inspiration, Design, history, inspiration, Isaiah Zagar, Landscape, Materials, murals, Personal History, Philadelphia, recycled art, recycling, repurposing, risk taking, South Philadelphia, South Philly, Tile, Uncategorized, Urban Artifacts, Urban Landscape, , , 2 Comments on Isaiah Zagar’s Walls

One of the things I love about Philadelphia are its tiny streets and lanes located off the main avenues. These thoroughfares date from long ago when servant’s quarters and horse barns (now desirable and expensive living quarters) were situated in the back alleys, and houses had boot scrapers near their doors so people could clean mud off their shoes before entering.

I didn’t discover these little streets until I stopped taking the bus everywhere and started walking. One of the most attractive features of the little byways in the Bella Vista neighborhood of Philadelphia are Isaiah Zagar’s tile and glass mosaics. They cover the facades of selected buildings waiting to surprise you as you turn a corner.

Here’s a slideshow of pictures I took on a walk through the neighborhood.