Toyoharu Kii

"Abandoned Land, " Mixed Media Mosaic

2017

Monochromatic, ethereal and highly textured, the abstract compositions of Japanese mosaic artist Toyoharu Kii reflect a sophisticated approach to the technical art of mosaic making. ...

In the series “Heavenly,” Toyoharu Kii honors the fullness of life and its continual rebirth. In some works, white tesserae assume abstract profiles. In others, irregular shapes cont...

In the mosaic “Accumulated Roads,” Toyoharu Kii describes the futility of man’s attempts to traverse and tame nature. The work portrays a tangle of once carefully aligned tesserea paths, now broken and falling ruin, a victim of disregard in nature’s relentless chaos. A leader of the cross-cultural craft resurgence, Japan-based artist Toyoharu Kii creates his intricate mosaics with hand-cut Italian marble and smalti, Venetian glass made by the same Italian family for over 400 years. Using traditional Italian techniques, Kii’s art is nonetheless modern. It is monochromatic, abstract, and highly textured and highlights the involved and technical art...

Intricate, ethereal and highly textured, the abstract compositions of Japanese mosaic artist Toyoharu Kii reflect a sophisticated approach to the technical art of mosaic making. Classically trained in Florence, Italy, Kii creates his modern mosaics using traditional techniques and materials, including hand-cut Italian marble and Venetian smalti glass. Eschewing the figural in favor of the abstract, his mosaics rely on contrasts of pattern and form to convey complex themes and achieve visual harmony. Toyoharu Kii’s latest body of work “Geophytes” continues themes of rebirth and renewal. A reference to plants that regrow from hidden elements beneath the earth’s surface, the series celebrates the resilience of the natural world. Each mosaic is imagined as a landscape that documents a history of environmental damage due to human activity, and the subsequent return of nature as a restorative force. Through the juxtaposition of patterns and the interplay of order and disorder, Kii creates man-made “images of destruction” and finds hope in the future by “reconstructing nature.” In this mosaic entitled "Ghost (Big Wings)," Kii takes a more representational approach to his storytelling, creating figurative drawings out of thin lines of tesserae. The mosaic belongs to his “Ghost” triptych, wherein Kii uses “wings” to represent the presence of a heavenly being, the ghosts of past spirits or the presence of an angel or guardian. In “Ghost (Big Wings),” Kii mourns the extinction of many creatures due to environmental change and imagines their lonely spirits wandering the earth. Enveloping their silhouettes is “a bird with big wings,” writes Kii, depicted here within a dense mosaic of abstract patterns, a symbol for nature’s healing power. “The bird consoles...

In the series “Heavenly,” Toyoharu Kii honors the fullness of life and its continual rebirth. In some works, white tesserae assume abstract profiles. In others, irregular shapes contain a disorderly array of jagged tiles, suggesting the unexpected moments that life reveals. Expressing his wish for guidance, the artist surrounds each marble form with a halo of golden tiles, representing the company of a heavenly guardian in the cycle of rebirth. This mosaic in particular is named after Ramiel, the archangel of hope. A leader of the cross-cultural craft resurgence, Japan...

In the series “Heavenly,” Toyoharu Kii honors the fullness of life and its continual rebirth. In some works, white tesserae assume abstract profiles. In others, irregular shapes cont...

Rare Vintage Judaica , extraordinary mosaic with sgraffito decorated ceramic tiles and Hebrew calligraphy by important ceramicist and mosaic artist David Holleman (b. 1927). Holleman was born in Massachusetts and studied at the Scott Carbee School of Art. He became acquainted with German Expressionism while serving in Berlin during World War II and was influenced by Carl Hofer, who inspired him to turn from paint to ceramics when he entered the Boston Museum School in 1948. Mr. Holleman's pottery won prizes at the National Ceramics Shows and has been purchased by the National Gallery in Washington D.C.; the Carnegie Institute, PA; Syracuse Museum, NY; Louisville Junior Museum, KY; Middlebury College...

Important polychrome mosaic realized by Afro in 1955 and based on his eponymous mixed media work of the same year now exhibited in MET NY. Signed lower right. Ref. M. Calvesi, Afro ...

Handcrafted by TF Dutchman, "Homage to NTEL" is a one of a kind original Tiffany style stained glass lamp. Deep greens, yellows, oranges and reds are enhanced by glass kiln...

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Svetlana Ostapovici was born in Ribnita, Republic of Moldova, in 1967. She is an affirmed international mosaic artist. In 1999, she moved to Italy. Greek and Latin culture had a stro...