Public Mosaic Art
The following community service art projects are examples of how the art of mosaics can be used as an intervention that encourages ownership in a community and results in civic pride.
Gordo Elementary Public Service Mosaic Benches
The sixth grade students at Gordo Elementary School in Gordo, Alabama create to mosaic benches as a community service project in collaboration with the Drug Abuse Resistance Education program. One bench contained the DARE logo, and would be installed on the school campus, while the second bench, featured images of public safety, and would be installed at the local city hall.
The students worked along side several teachers and artists after school for several weeks in order to complete the benches.
The students worked along side several teachers and artists after school for several weeks in order to complete the benches.
Twelve Purple Benches
The Twelve Purple Benches project was sponsored by the Tempe Arizona public art program. These benches were a collaboration between the students at Connolly, Fees, Glilland and McKemy schools. The benches were covered with a mosaic of handmade and hand-glazed tiles created by the students. These tiles, which featured personal imagery and designs influenced by the visual and performing arts and images of the environment of the city of Tempe, were edited dried, fired, glazed, refired, applied and grouted by the artist. These benches are site specific and designed to provide comfortable seating without impeding the flow of pedestrian traffic within the plaza environment. The simple geometry of this project respectfully integrates into the public space, while the visual impact of the community-based mosaic artwork unifies the benches with the environmental color of the surrounding space.
Over-the-Rhine Mosaic Bench Project
More than 200 neighborhood residents and local artists of all ages came together to design a sculptural mosaic bench, now permanently located in Washington Park. Lead artist Suzanne Fisher incorporated images of peace from photographs and children's drawings into the design. The piece was unveiled August 3, 2002 at the Over-the-Rhine Community Festival. Generous support came from the Over-the-Rhine Community Council, the Cincinnati Recreation Commission's Arts for All program, the Miami University Center for Community Development, and local businesses.
Grant's Tomb Benches
In an effort to protect the 1897 memorial to General Grant which is located in Riverside Park in New York City, the Park Service collaborated with the organization CITYarts to work with artist, architects, and community volunteers to create something wonderful on that site. The result was the Mosaic Benches at Grant's Tomb - the largest public arts project of its day - 350 fett of mosaic-embedded benches that surround the building's back and sides. The project, completed in the 1970's, was designed by artist Pedro Silva and consists of 17 benches reflecting different images that range from Medieval mythology to modern.
Braddock Youth Project - "The Pond Mosaic"
This mosaic pond is just one of the projects completed with the Braddock Youth Project. This project was installed in Braddock, Pa. and turned an empty lot into a mosaic park. The central focus of the part was the mosaic pond, from which radiated 'streams,' or walking paths along with mosaic totem poles. The artist, James Simon, along with a group of people from divers organizations succeeded in bringing beauty and positive change into a community through the use of art.
