Mosaic (28134)
Mosaic is the art of decoration with small pieces of colored glass, stone or other material. It may be a technique of decorative art, an aspect of interior decoration or of cultural and spiritual significance as in a cathedral. more...
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Small tiles or fragments of pottery (known as tesserae, diminutive tessellae) or of colored glass or clear glass backed with metal foils are used to create a pattern or picture.
Use
Mosaic was used across the ancient world for domestic interior decoration. Mosaics of the 4th century BC are found in the Macedonian palace-city of Aegae, and they enriched the floors of Hellenistic villas, and Roman dwellings from Britain to Dura-Europas. Splendid mosaic floors distinguished luxurious Roman villas across north Africa. In Rome, Nero and his architects used mosaics to cover the surfaces of walls and ceilings in the Domus Aurea, built AD 64.
With the building of Christian basilicas in the late 4th century, wall and ceiling mosaics were adapted to Christian uses. The greatest development of Christian mosaics unfolded in the Byzantine empire including its outpost the Exarchate of Ravenna and its territories in Sicily, and in its rival Venice, where mosaic encrusts the exterior and interior of St Mark's. In Western Europe, the demanding techniques of fresco replaced the even more labor-intensive techniques of mosaic.
Islamic architecture used mosaic technique in intricate geometric designs. The process is known as zillij in North Africa and qashani further east. Some of the best examples of Islamic mosaics were produced in Moorish Spain and are still visible at the Alhambra. The craft has also been popular in the Eastern Orthodox tradition and in Russia.
A modern example of mosaic is the Museum of Natural History station of the New York Subway. Mosaic was also first made in the 8th century B.C for pavements. By 200 B.C the Greeks used pebbles called tesseral for their mosaics. Roman Mosiacs were covered with LAVA from volcanic eruptions
Some spectacular modern mosaics are the work of modernisme style architects Antoni Gaudí and Josep Maria Jujol, for example the unique mosaics in the Park Güell in Barcelona.
Ravenna (Italy) is known world-wide as the Capital of Mosaic on account of its unique artistic heritage. A few miles from Venice and Florence it is a city rich with artistic treasures such as S. Apollinare Nuovo, Basilica di San Vitale, Mausoleo di Galla Placidia.
Mosaic technique
There are three main methods: the direct method, the indirect method and the double indirect method.
Direct method
The direct method of mosaic construction involves directly placing (gluing) the individual tesserae onto the supporting surface. This method is well suited to surfaces that have a three-dimensional quality, such as vases.
Read more at Wikipedia.org
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