Pear on Pink

Pear on Pink is done in the style of painting with glass. It presents a pear that I grew in my garden and I was intrigued with the voluptuous shape and the lovely green and yellow shading on the fruit. The mosaic uses the same principles of light and color that would be used in a painting to create the illusion of shape and depth, including a subtle double gradient in the background from light to dark and simultaneously from warm foreground to cooler background. Andamento, the flow with which the pieces are set, also enhances the shape of the pear and shadow and adds interest to the pink. In order to achieve the flowing lines, each of the over 500 tesserae (pieces of glass) is cut individually for its position in the work so that curves are achieved using trapezoids rather than only squares or rectangles and the exact color can be chosen for its specific placement.
The material used is exclusively Italian smalti, a handcrafted glass made specifically for use in mosaics that fractures to create irregular surfaces that enliven the composition with changing reflections of light. Smalti is typically cut with precision and used without grout to maximize sparkle. A few highlights are created using gold smalti - 16 carat gold foil encased in glass. Can you spot them?