Mosaics reflect light in a unique way

Because they are not perfectly level, each one of the many tiles composing a mosaic reflects the light at a very different angle.

That’s the magic of mosaics. Under an ideal light, they act like a Mirror ball !

A picture cannot illustrate this amazing and unique effect.

Just like the picture of the mosaic ball above does not show the thousands of light rays irradiating from it, a flat picture of a mosaic only gives you a static view of it. It might as well be a painting ! Mosaics are supposed to shine and bring light in a home. Because they have the ability to reflect the light in such an amazing way, they look different depending upon the ambient light, and upon the angle you take to look at them.

Videos perfectly capture the uniqueness of mosaics.

A mosaic video will actually show the mosaic as if you were actually walking around the wall or floor where it is displayed. It will allow you to enjoy the many different ways it looks depending upon where you stand.

in November of 2017 I created 4 variations of a mosaic portrait.

And shot this short clip which I hope will make my point about mosaic video …

So my fellow mosaicists, if we really want people to appreciate our work, we should shoot a short mosaic video rather than pictures.

And when we – the public – want to enjoy mosaics in a Gallery, a Museum or in Situ, we should try to :

• watch them when the sun is not too high above the horizon, for evening or morning light reveal details hidden at noon,
• take the time to walk around to enjoy the magic of the light shining on the tesserae.

Have you ever visited places where huge modern or ancient mosaics were displayed ? In a few weeks, I will take a tour of the mosaics along the Roman Via Baetica in Southern Spain. I will post many pictures, and videos of my discoveries !