Category Archives: Glass Mosaic

Our 2020 show opens in May!

Life begins anew in spring, a fitting time to present our 2020 exhibition titled “Renewal”.

The exhibition and sale of new works takes place from May 1 to 29, 2020, at Kloepfer Gallery in downtown Guelph, Ontario.  The public is invited to an opening reception with artists present, on Saturday, May 2 from 7:00 to 9:00 pm.

Participating artists in this year’s show are: Judy French (oil); Carol Hughes (watercolour); Kim Johnston (water media, pastel and oils); Jean Loney (glass mosaic); Gail Root (oils and chalk pastel); M. Anne Smith (textile and fibre arts); plus new members Dianne Kennedy Cruttenden (woven tapestry); and Heather Wood (glass and mixed media).

 

MOSAIC ARTIST JEAN LONEY

Jean LoneyLoney, Little Blue Heron, cropped

Biography

Jean Loney was born in London, England, raised in Toronto and then settled in Fergus, Ontario with her husband to raise their two daughters. Jean studied art at high school, however, while attending the University of Toronto she focused her studies on Sociology and English, and later pursued a career in elementary education. During her teaching years, Jean concentrated her artistic talents on creating a perennial garden for her century home. Digging in the dirt turned up shards of pottery, iron spikes, medicine bottles, and an old porcelain doll’s face. These buried bits of history led to a fascination with underground strata, shown in Jean’s sea- and earth-scapes.

Jean studied watercolour techniques with Nan Hogg in Guelph and Jack Reid at the Haliburton School of the Arts. After her retirement from teaching, Jean changed her artistic focus after taking a short course in mosaics with Guelph artist Deb Dryden. For a former primary teacher, “making mosaics is like cutting and pasting for grown-ups! It’s the colour, texture and sparkle of the glass that calls to me”. Although glass is not a fluid medium, Jean shapes it to represent air and water, making something effortless and flowing out of this concrete material.

Jean has taken classes from North American masters of modern mosaic technique, such as Lynne Chinn, Yulia Hanansen, and Sophie Drouin. Currently, she teaches mosaics at the Maplestone Gallery in Creemore, Ontario. Jean’s work is in private collections in Canada, the West Indies, Australia, and Great Britain. She is a member of the Society of American Mosaic Artists.

Artist’s Statement

Intangible elements from my life are expressed in my mosaics. My work, like many contemporary mosaics, incorporates a variety of materials other than glass, including stone, tile, pottery shards, beads, and found objects. The choice of material is suggested by the image and the image is then shaped by my vision of its essence. My current series of bird studies provides an entry to the magic of a natural world which for me is best expressed in glass mosaics.

Loney, Low Tide with Little Blue Heron

Loney, Earthscape for Carolee

Loney, Cafe des Arts

 

Loney, Birches