About Joyce

I have had several careers in my life but have always painted or been involved with art in some fashion. I have been fortunate to pursue art as a full time career for the last six+ years and it has been my favorite and one of the biggest joys of my life.

I love flea markets and junking and, after seeing the movie “How to make an American quilt” with Wynona Ryder, I was smitten with the idea of breaking china and found objects and creating something new. I started collecting things and mosaicing just about anything that could hold adhesive.

After a trip to Europe, again I was so taken with the paintings and mosaic work in the churches. I enrolled in a mosaic workshop in Ravenna, Italy and learned how to use the materials and techniques of classical mosaics. I have since returned to do several more mosaic workshops in Venice and again in Ravenna. I have also been working with clay and watercolor at the Art Academy of Cincinnati, Ohio.

It has all started coming together for me. I combine classical mosaics using smalti (an opaque Venetian glass) with my own clay sculptures which often convey a theme and sometimes a bit of humor or sarcasm. After returning from Venice in the fall of 2005, my latest challenge has been to “paint with tiles”; using smalti instead of paints to convey light and shadows.

Mosaic as an art form has really starting coming into its own in this country. It can be anything from craft to architecture to fine art. I am glad we found each other.