What inspires our creativity
Creativity is a funny thing sometimes.
In our daily work of designing and making mosaics we often just get on with it, even if there are no great ‘aha!’ moments.
Perhaps that’s the secret to creativity. Not to wait for inspiration. But to let it come to you during the process of creation.
That said, we are always keen to find inspiration for creating our mosaic artworks, because part of the joy of creativity is being receptive to new ideas – even ones from a thousand years ago, as many mosaics often are…
Taking inspiration from great works of art
Our home in Greenwood is a treasure trove of art works that we have collected over many years, especially from our trips to Italy.
We’ve also amassed a large collection of art books and media materials, which we often flick through just for the sheer joy of immersing ourselves in something beautiful.
All this filters through into our work.
When we are designing a mosaic, we have a deep well of artistic inspiration to draw upon, creating echoes of works we admire, or continuing an idea we are attracted to.
Maybe that’s why we have such a distinct style, combining the best elements of classical Roman tesserae mosaics with a modern approach that cuts and shapes tiles to make specific designs.
Nature inspires our mosaics
Many of the mosaics we have crated over the years are directly inspired by or incorporate elements of nature – particularly Australian flora and fauna.
And it’s no accident that our garden – Gandara – is an eclectic mix of all the plants we love, with everything from a flowering gum tree to cactuses and succulents.
Sometimes we just sit in the garden and have a cup of tea, listening to the birds in the trees and noticing the flowering of certain plants in different times of the year.
Creativity has its seasons too, so it’s rewarding to be in tune to nature’s.
Looking in the tile library
One of the main sources of inspiration we have is the “tile library” that we keep at our Greenwood mosaic studio.
This is a collection of thousands of tiles with different colours, contours, and qualities, which we draw from to create our mosaics.
When we think up a mosaic design, we don’t just consider what the artwork will depict – we also explore how its elements will be created with the tiles we have, everything from the colour hues to the textures.
Lisa is an expert at hunting down rare and interesting tiles, saving them for just the right occasion when a design needs something special to bring it to vivid life.
Inside the tile ‘library’
Seeking out a challenge
There is nothing worse to us than consistency.
Whilst we strive to always create high-quality mosaic art works that meet our exacting standards, we are not perfectionists.
A little roughness or a few imperfections show the hand of the maker, and to us that’s more interesting than something that looks like it could have been made by a machine.
It’s why we always seek to create mosaic designs that have an element (or two) that will challenge our skills. It’s an ambitious approach, but we find it produces the best results.
How do you approach your creative work and find inspiration? Let us know in the comments!
Because inspiration is everywhere, especially between artists.