About
The Artist |
Sue Giannotti is a graduate of Washington University in St. Louis and is the founder of Mosaic Opus Studio, near St. Louis, Missouri, where she creates original mosaic artworks and architectural commissions. Originally trained in Italy, she uses millennia-tested tools, techniques and materials to create contemporary work.
Simplicity, serenity and strength.... Sue's work is about capturing the essence of the subject, whether that is a person, place, emotion or moment. She distills the image down to the bare essentials and encourages the viewer to become quiet and still, joining her across the work in meditation and introspection. She chooses to work in mosaic for the texture, the play of the light on the surface, and the medium’s ability to look soft and strong at the same time-- a fascinating dichotomy which exists in people as well. Her work has been exhibited and collected in the US and internationally, including France, Italy and Japan. She has been a visiting artist instructor at The Chicago Mosaic School since 2006. Sue is a prior Board member of The Society of American Mosaic Artists and during her tenure on the Board, she initiated, organized, and directed the annual SAMA Mosaic Salon Exhibition which recently celebrated its 14th year. |
The Process |
Tools and Tesserae
The traditional tools of mosaicists, the Hammer and Hardie (a wedge of metal set in a log) have been used for millennia to individually create the pieces--called Tesserae--in a mosaic. Usually beginning with a sketch or intent, Sue selects the materials (glass, stone, slate, etc.). It is then that the cutting begins. In a mosaic, each piece (tessera) has a different shape, size, color and texture, all created to come together and express the story or sensation. Each tessera is cut using these tools and set into the adhesive bed one at a time while also playing with the angle, height, light, as well as the visual conversation the pieces--and the spaces in between them--have with each other. To Sue, this conversation is magical. |