A Mosaic of Mosaics - Revision history

Nbloniarz at 08:51, 22 June 2017

2017-06-22T08:51:26Z

Nbloniarz at 08:50, 22 June 2017

2017-06-22T08:50:13Z

Nbloniarz at 08:49, 22 June 2017

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Nbloniarz at 14:59, 20 June 2017

2017-06-20T14:59:23Z

Nbloniarz at 14:56, 20 June 2017

2017-06-20T14:56:11Z

Nbloniarz at 11:44, 20 June 2017

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Nbloniarz at 11:40, 20 June 2017

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Nbloniarz at 11:39, 20 June 2017

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Nbloniarz at 11:32, 20 June 2017

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Nbloniarz at 11:29, 20 June 2017

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 =Conclusion=
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-Throughout this milestone I learned about mosaics, and the materials and tools needed to create one. I then applied this knowledge to a digital setting (Photoshop) and compared how it is different from the traditional methods. I can confidently say that the process of creating a digital mosaic is much more forgiving than a physical mosaic. I would have loved to use more of my own photos, but due to having to look up or down at most of the mosaics the distortion made the tiles appear lopsided. It would be interesting to make a physical mosaic and be able to compare those experiences in a more than theoretical setting. It would also be interesting to see how digital enhancement of the images used to create the mosaic or a change in the color palate could change the mood of the piece.
+Throughout this milestone I learned about mosaics, and the materials and tools needed to create one. I then applied this knowledge to a digital setting (Photoshop) and compared how it is different from the traditional methods. I can confidently say that the process of creating a digital mosaic is much more forgiving than a physical mosaic. I would have loved to use more of my own photos, but due to having to look up or down at most of the mosaics the distortion made the tiles appear lopsided and pure colors were impossible to find. It would be interesting to make a physical mosaic and be able to compare those experiences in a more than theoretical setting. It would also be interesting to see how digital enhancement of the images used to create the mosaic or a change in the color palate could change the mood of the piece.
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   | bodystyle = width:40em
   | image=[[Image:NBMosaic_V1.png]]
-  | label2=
+  | label1= '''Artist:'''
-  | data2=
+  | data1= [[User:Nbloniarz|Natalie Bloniarz]]
 }}

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   | bodystyle = width:40em
   | image=[[Image:NBMosaic_V1.png]]
-  | label1= '''Artist:'''
+  | label2=
-  | data1= [[User:Nbloniarz|Natalie Bloniarz]]
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 }}

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 by [[User:Nbloniarz|Natalie Bloniarz]]<br>
 {{Infobox
   | image=[[Image:NBMosaic_V1.png]]
   | label1= '''Artist:'''

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 by [[User:Nbloniarz|Natalie Bloniarz]]<br>
 {{Infobox
-  | image=[[File:NBMosaic_V1.png|x500px]]
+  | image=[[Image:NBMosaic_V1.png]]
   | label1= '''Artist:'''
   | data1= [[User:Nbloniarz|Natalie Bloniarz]]

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 ==A Comparison==
-Unlike a physical medium, a digital medium has limitless possibilities. For this mosaic my tiling is made up of pictures of mosaics. The pictures used for this mosaic specifically are of monochromatic mosaics similar to a Roman stone mosaic. I chose these pictures because of their color schemes, especially the pure white and black images to be able to create a sharp contrast.
+Unlike a physical medium, a digital medium has limitless possibilities. For this mosaic my tiling is made up of pictures of mosaics. The pictures used for this mosaic specifically are of monochromatic mosaics similar to a Roman stone mosaic. I chose these pictures because of their color schemes, especially the pure white and black images, to be able to create a sharp contrast.
 [[Image:NBLeafZoom.png|right]]
-[[Image:NBConcentricZoom.png|right|x210px]] The final image in the gallery below was my main inspiration for this mosaic, as it has a simple geometric pattern and a monochromatic color palette. I have seen mosaics similar to that final gallery image across London, from museum walls and floors to store entryways; because of the common appearance of this style of mosaic I tried to replicate the elements I observed: a dark and thick border, repeating shapes, and large sections of the same color were the specific elements I chose to focus on. For this design, I chose the size of my tiles to be different in each major section to create movement and a stronger division of each section. The border is darker than the surrounding tiles, but not the darkest element of the mosaic; I kept the border at a medium darkness to have a wider range of  grey shades rather than a pure black and white mosaic. In terms of repeating shapes I decided to create a leaf shape and concentric circles. The leaf pattern pays homage to the mosaics on the stairs of the [[Victoria and Albert Museum]] and I thought an irregular shape would add more complexity to a relatively simplistic design. The concentric circles are a reference to the first image in the gallery of images I used, as it has a clearly defined circle and then a circular element inside of that circle. I chose to create large sections of solid color blocks to achieve the same effect of the mosaics I observed, which was a harsh visual contrast and subdivision of the areas in the mosaic.
+[[Image:NBConcentricZoom.png|right|x210px]] The final image in the gallery of images I used to create this mosaic was my main inspiration for this mosaic, as it has a simple geometric pattern and a monochromatic color palette. I have seen mosaics similar to that final gallery image across London, from museum walls and floors to store entryways; because of the common appearance of this style of mosaic, I tried to replicate the elements I observed: a dark and thick border, repeating shapes, and large sections of a singular color. These were the specific elements I chose to focus on in my design. For this design, I chose the size of my tiles to be different in each major section to create movement and a stronger division of each section. The border is darker than the surrounding tiles, but not the darkest element of the mosaic; I kept the border at a medium darkness to have a wider range of  shades of grey, rather than a pure black and white mosaic. In terms of repeating shapes I decided to create a leaf shape and concentric circles. The leaf pattern pays homage to the mosaics on the stairs of the [[Victoria and Albert Museum]] and I thought an irregular shape would add more complexity to a relatively simplistic design. The concentric circles are a reference to the first image in the gallery of images I used, as it has a clearly defined circle and then a circular element inside of that circle. I chose to create large sections of solid color blocks to achieve the same effect of the mosaics I observed, which were harsh visual contrast and subdivision of the areas in the mosaic.
 <br>
-To move onto the base, I chose to use a grey background for my tiles to rest upon. I chose this color to replicate the appearance of concrete which is visible in some of the more worn mosaics I have seen. The base rectangle is only visible in a few places because I personally favor a tightly packed mosaic over one with a larger space and more base visible between the tiles. Another reason for my choice of base was that for the sections with small gaps between the tiles it would mock the appearance of grout. The adhesive holding the mosaic together is the merging of each individual image layer in Photoshop; this is almost as permanent as a physical adhesive due to the, albeit large, limit to the number of times a user can undo an action. To shape my tiles I used the crop tool in Photoshop, not unlike using tile cutters to shape and resize tiles. All of the tools I deem necessary to create a digital mosaic can be found in Photoshop: crop, clone, and merge. Photoshop served as my entire studio when creating this mosaic in that it held all of my tools and materials, in a clean and organized manner.
+To move onto the base, I chose to use a grey background for my tiles to rest upon. I chose this color to replicate the appearance of concrete, which is visible in some of the more worn mosaics I have seen. The base rectangle is only visible in a few places because I personally favor a tightly packed mosaic over one with a larger space and therefore more base visible between the tiles. Another reason for my choice of base was that for the sections with small gaps between the tiles it would mock the appearance of grout. The adhesive holding the mosaic together is the merging of each individual image layer in Photoshop; this is almost as permanent as a physical adhesive due to the, albeit large, limit to the number of times a user can undo an action. To shape my tiles I used the crop tool in Photoshop, not unlike using tile cutters to shape and resize tiles. All of the tools I deem necessary to create a digital mosaic can be found in Photoshop: crop, clone, and merge. Photoshop served as my entire studio when creating this mosaic in that it held all of my tools and materials, in a clean and organized manner.
 <br><br>
-In terms of techniques the digital and physical methods of creating mosaics are very similar. For the border portion of the mosaic, I created it in a separate file and later placed that file into the main mosaic. This is a direct translation of the indirect method from physical to digital, as the physical method involves creating the mosaic offsite and then placing the pre-created piece into place. The remaining portion of the mosaic was created using the direct method, adding image by image into the file, placing them in the correct position, and then merging the layers to cement the mosaic together. I tried two techniques to create the concentric circles the first of the two was rotating the tiles to create the illusion of a curve. This option was inefficient and I did not have enough skill to achieve the desired effect, so I decided to maximize my digital advantage by creating a rectangular block and cutting the circle from that block. The latter attempt to create the circles allowed me to achieve a perfectly round edge to my tiles, a task that would be incredibly difficult by hand.
+In terms of techniques, the digital and physical methods of creating mosaics are very similar. For the border portion of the mosaic, I created it in a separate file and later placed that file into the main mosaic. This is a direct translation of the indirect method from physical to digital, as the physical method involves creating the mosaic offsite and then placing the pre-created piece into place. The remaining portion of the mosaic was created using the direct method, adding image by image into the file, placing them in the correct position, and then merging the layers to cement the mosaic together. I tried two techniques to create the concentric circles the first of the two was rotating the tiles to create the illusion of a curve. This option was inefficient and I did not have enough skill to achieve the desired effect, so I decided to maximize my digital advantage by creating a rectangular block and cutting the circle from that block. The latter attempt to create the circles allowed me to achieve a perfectly round edge to my tiles, a task that would be incredibly difficult by hand.
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 <gallery mode="packed" caption="Images used in the mosaic">

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 ==About the Mosaic==
-For my mosaic I decided to use a completely digital medium, akin to a collage. The tiles of my mosaic are photos of mosaics, one taken by me and the other three from the internet, that have been shrunken down to a relatively consistent size. I then took my digital tesserae and using Photoshop, I created the image above. The digital medium I used allowed for more experimentation than would have been allowed by the traditional physical mosaic, as I could move photos whenever I wanted and undo my mistakes. I also had an unlimited supply of tile possibilities at my fingertips via the world wide web if i needed a new tile. I also used a combination of the two techniques as some of my designs such as the leaf design I created separately on a separate layer and placed them into the piece; I used the direct method for the outermost set of white tiles directly placing each tile in its position. A digital medium also provides the advantage of creating a clone of an image allowing me to speed up the creation of my mosaic, by only having to create half of it and then duplicating and mirroring the image. One other major advantage was the lack of precision needed to accurately shape the tiles; Photoshop can ensue that my tiles are even and shaped exactly to fit thee hole it was being put into. I used a monochrome palate inspired by the mosaics on the floor of the [[Victoria and Albert Museum]] and around the city. This also inspired my heavy use of geometric patterns like the concentric circles and the repeated use of right angles.
+For my mosaic I decided to use a completely digital medium, akin to a collage. The tiles of my mosaic are photos of mosaics, one taken by me and the other three from the internet, that have been shrunken down to a relatively consistent size. I then took my digital tesserae and using Photoshop I created the image above. The digital medium I used allowed for more experimentation than would have been allowed by the traditional physical mosaic media, as I could move photos whenever I wanted and constantly undo my mistakes. I also had an unlimited supply of tile possibilities at my fingertips via the world wide web if I needed a new tile. I also used a combination of the two techniques as some of my designs such as the leaf design I created separately on a separate layer and placed them into the piece; I used the direct method for the outermost set of white tiles directly placing each tile in its position. A digital medium also provides the advantage of creating a clone of an image allowing me to speed up the creation of my mosaic, by only having to create half of it, or even a quarter, and then duplicating and mirroring the image. One other major advantage was the lack of precision needed to accurately shape the tiles; Photoshop can ensure that my tiles are even and shaped exactly to fit the shape of the hole it was being put into. I used a monochrome palate inspired by the mosaics on the floor of the [[Victoria and Albert Museum]] and around the city. This also inspired my heavy use of geometric patterns like the concentric circles and the repeated use of right angles.
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 ==A Modern Mosaic==
 [[Image:NBMosaic_V1.png]]

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 [[Image:NBIndirect.jpg|x200px|right|thumb|<small>''An example of the product of the indirect method</small><ref>Biggs, E. (2003). Mosaic techniques (1st ed., pp. 82). London: Cassell Illustrated.</ref>'']]
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-This method is useful for larger designs, as the artist can create sections of the piece and just have to assemble the larger pieces at the end. The indirect method also allows for a controlled environment when creating a mosaic that will be outdoors rather than being limited by factors such as temperature and humidity; it also allows for modification before the finalized design because the adhesive before it is applied to the base is removable. The base for this method is typically paper or mesh, the mesh allowing for more flexibility in the design because it is easy to cut away any undesirable pieces. The mesh differs from other materials used for the indirect method in that the tiles are placed finished side up, glowing the artist to view the final design like the direct method. This can also be done with the face tape method that uses clear tape to hold the mosaic together with the finished side visible until it needs to be adhered. The reverse method is the more complicated of the three major indirect method techniques as it involves working in reverse, therefore creating a mirror image of the design. The tesserae are placed onto a surface on the face that will be visible and then adhered together from behind to a temporary base. The mosaic is then flipped and applied to the base, and then the temporary base is removed. <ref>King, S. (2006). Mosaic techniques & traditions (1st ed., pp. 116-123). New York: Sterling.</ref><ref>Biggs, E. (2003). Mosaic techniques (1st ed., pp. 80-83). London: Cassell Illustrated.</ref><ref>Fitzgerald, B. Complete guide to mosaic technique (1st ed., pp. 90-101). London: Quarto Publishing plc.</ref>
+The indirect method takes a different approach to assembly than the direct method in that the final assembly is more like completing a puzzle, fitting all of the predetermined pieces together. This method is useful for larger designs, as the artist can create sections of the piece and just have to assemble the larger pieces at the end. The indirect method also allows for a controlled environment when creating a mosaic that will be displayed outdoors rather than being limited by factors such as temperature and humidity. It also allows for modification of sections of the mosaic before the finalized design is complete; this is possible because of the adhesive applied to each section of mosaic is removable, allowing for easy deconstruction of the miniature mosaic. The base for this assembly method is typically paper or mesh, the mesh option allowing for more flexibility in the design because it is easy to cut away any undesirable pieces. The mesh differs from other materials used for the indirect method in that the tiles are placed finished side up, allowing the artist to view the final design like the direct method. This can also be done with the face tape method that uses clear tape to hold the mosaic together, with the finished side visible until it needs to be adhered. The reverse method is the more complicated of the indirect method techniques as it involves working in reverse, therefore creating a mirror image of the design. The tesserae are placed onto a surface with the face that will be visible placed facing the surface and then adhered together from behind to a temporary base. The mosaic is then flipped and applied to the base, and then the temporary base is removed. <ref>King, S. (2006). Mosaic techniques & traditions (1st ed., pp. 116-123). New York: Sterling.</ref><ref>Biggs, E. (2003). Mosaic techniques (1st ed., pp. 80-83). London: Cassell Illustrated.</ref><ref>Fitzgerald, B. Complete guide to mosaic technique (1st ed., pp. 90-101). London: Quarto Publishing plc.</ref>
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