Violin in pique assiette.

This was a commissioned art piece. I was approached by someone via the Internet who had admired my mosaic work and wanted a special graduation gift for her daughter who was majoring in music and whose love was the violin.

After we had discussed and agreed to the project, I was anxiously awaiting the instrument to begin, as we had decided it was best for her to ship a suitable one rather than me finding one to use.

Imagine my surprise when the package arrived with 3 violins and 3X the deposit!!!

When contacted she said she had thought it would be fun to also have one done as a gift to another daughter who also loved playing as well as one to present as a show of appreciation to their music instructor. I asked her to send pictures of colors and favorite items of her daughters so I could get a feel of personality. The daughter that this violin was made for was very feminine and loved pink.

Out of the three, this was my favorite. I first took apart the violin. I then primed and painted the base a soft ballet pink leaving the part that would be mosaicked. As it had a thick coat of varnish, I sanded the part that the tesserae would be attached to and then scored with a razor for some *tooth*. As this would be an indoor piece, I adhered the tesserae with Weldbond using the direct method.

I hand cut vintage plates with rose patterns including Knowles, French Limoges and Haviland Limoges. Soft pink stained glass was used to accent the roses and harmonize with the pink of the violin base. Generally, I use the Opus Palladianum technique in laying my tesserae but did have some definition in this design using the different plates and stained glass as my pattern taking cues from the lines and feel of the violin. I also used the scalloped rims from luncheon plates as a pattern. I grouted with white sanded grout. It was then sealed with a commercial sealant for endurance and to repel soil/dust. I then put the violin back together deciding to use pink glass seed beads on the strings.

The result made a perfect heirloom treasure that combines visual art as well as the art of music. These young ladies are so blessed to have parents that have lovingly exposed them to both elements.