Parallel Perfection: Mosaic Art & Home

 A view of "my store" in Smithville.

A month or so ago... Right before I decided to redirect myself and focus on my art, I had toyed very seriously with reinventing Blues Alley into a serious culture center with artist workshops and a spacious art gallery.  I would have continued the offering of the finest handmade items of Texan culture, including pottery, weavings and Native American baskets.  But I had a moment of sanity, calculated the personal costs involved in the success of such a venture, and I resigned as manager instead.

DECISION: My own artwork has to take first priority.

Then this week I walked into my trashed vision for Blues Alley… in Smithville.

It was a dream come true. My dream…  at somebody else’s expense. And better than I would have done. The gallery is called Mosaic. And that it is.

fetching, spacious, artistically invigorating...

I saw it while driving through the main crossroads in town… had seen it once or twice before.  "Mosaic" sounded like something that might be interesting someday when I had time to shop… and since the foundry in town, where my sculpture is being cast was unexpectedly shut down for repairs, it was the time! So what was this mosaic?

An arsenal of the highest quality, whimsical handmade furniture, exploding with color and life, fills the store, which also features original paintings, hand blown glass, hand thrown ceramics, and many other eye-catching original creations.  

I'll bet you don't have one of these... but I bet you would love to.

All inside a elegantly remodeled Turn of the Century store, blessed with a fabulous broken-tile mosaic floor.  It is a delight to just stand and take it all in.

The floor is a masterpiece in itself. Everything looks better next to it. 

As soon as I walked into the place, I could see that I was right… it would have been cool… and the main difference was I planned to have at least one of the exhibitors demonstrating every day. But otherwise, it was as if I had walked into a parallel life… with somebody else living it for me. The store has been in progress for about a year… and open for about 6 months. 

I hope that Mosaic makes it, and makes me sorry I turned my back on a serious inclination… it is a very special shop, that you will have to see for yourself, and perhaps, discover your own parallel moment of perfection.