Pictured above:
Mural name: Generations
Location: Oakland Firehouse 18 - Oakland, CA
Project date: 2010
Public Art Project (Scroll to the bottom for complete project details.)
Replay of Mosaic Murals and Public Art:
A Presentation to the New England Mosaic Society
Original Air Date: October 11, 2023
Click below (or above) to watch the FREE replay.
In this hour-long presentation to the New England Mosaic Society, longtime public artist and educator Laurel True presented several case studies highlighting the intersection of creative placemaking and community engagement in the public sphere.
Laurel shared examples of mosaic murals and architectural projects that she and her teams have created -- demonstrating various approaches to design development, planning, organization, and execution of public work.
The talk was followed by a Q & A.
Viewers will learn about aspects of working with civic agencies, percent-for-art programs, nonprofits, and commercial clients to create mosaic mural projects that foster mutual benefit for participants, stakeholders, and larger communities.
Laurel also touched on:
• Essential aspects of the application, proposal, and creation process for public projects
• Understanding best practices and budget considerations for public work
• Relationship building
• Balancing the concrete stuff with inspiration, fun, and fulfillment
Enjoy!
“I'm a really big advocate of creative practice as a way to co-regulate with our fellow humans in the world. And, I just think making things is a wonderful way to be with other people.”
- Laurel True (excerpt from Mosaic Murals and Public Art talk)
All the details...
This recording of my live interview-style talk is approximately an hour.
Scroll below to be able to view the recording (free).
Please be sure to "opt in" to receive emails from True Mosaics Online so you can receive course content and links (we promise not to spam you).
Original Event Date:
October 11, 2023
Note: If you are interested in my work with Partners in Health, you can learn more in my book, Mosaics at Hopital Universitaire de Mirebalais (scroll to the end)...
About Laurel True
Laurel True is an artist, teacher and advocate of creative expression. Through her studio, True Mosaics Studio, she has specialized in creative placemaking, public art and architectural mosaics for the past 30 years. She has created architectural installations, mosaic murals and sculptural forms for parks, transit systems, streetscapes, hospitals, social and education centers, and commercial and residential spaces across the US and in Haiti, Europe, Mexico, South and Central America and Africa.
She has an active studio practice through which she explores concepts of beauty, identity and perception using juxtapositions of materials and iterative processes.
True co-founded the Institute of Mosaic Art in Oakland, California and has fostered education in the mosaic arts through teaching and speaking around the world. She is Founding Director of Global Mosaic Project, which provides art education and entrepreneurial training to underserved communities in urban and developing areas through socially engaged art. True has trained thousands of students, volunteers, artists, teachers and community members in the creation of over 200 projects globally that contribute to environmental beautification, economic and community development, well-being and social justice.
True apprenticed with artist Isaiah Zagar after receiving a degree in African Studies from University of Wisconsin. She has studied at Studio Arte del Mosaico in Ravenna, Italy; Universite Chiek Anta Diop in Dakar, Senegal; Parsons School of Design in New York and the Art Institute of Chicago. She participated in/partnered with TEDWomen, International Urban Mosaic Intervention in Chile, International Community Mural Arts Program in Turkey through the US State Department, Partners In Health, UNOPS, Jacmel Mozaik Haiti and recently published her first book.
Photo: Mosaic mural team in Rwanda, with Laurel.
Book a Coaching Session with me for Professional or Personal Creative Development.
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Get a signed copy of my book
Mosaics at Hopital Universitaire de Mirebalais
Available for purchase at my website, truemosaics.com/books
Learn more about my work over the years,
with Partners in Health ...
This book showcases the many projects I created in partnership with Partners In Health at University Hospital in central Haiti. This hardcover, coffee-table-worthy book is full of wonderful images and stories about the mosaic murals installed throughout the hospital, and those that contributed to their creation.
"A beautiful, inspiring book about the architectural mosaic projects that artist Laurel True created with her team at University Hospital in Mirebalais, Haiti between 2011 and 2016, in partnership with public health organizations, Partners in Health and Build Health International."
Signed copies of the book, Mosaics at Hopital Univeritaire de Mirebalais, are available for purchase on my website at truemosaics.com/books.
Buying this book will directly help people. Net proceeds from the sale of this book will go to support Partners In Health, Global Mosaic Project and members of the Mirebalais Mosaic Collective in Haiti.
Mural: Generations
Pictured at left (and top):
Location: Oakland Firehouse 18 - Oakland, CA
Project date: 2010
Public Art Project
Two exterior murals on façade of new firehouse serving East Oakland’s Melrose neighborhood.
Conducted community interviews, interviews with fire crew and local youth for design resource material as well as stories and historical photographs of the fire department and community, which were used in the murals.
Materials for mosaic were gathered partially from the rubble of the 1920’s firehouse that was demolished in order to build an updated facility, linking the past to the future.
Mural design references the local street culture (scraper cars and scraper bikes), industrial history of the neighborhood and family and intergenerational connections among and between the fire crew and in the larger community.
Project also included two interior mosaic murals.
Dimensions: Each façade mural 10’ x 12’.
Materials: Ceramic tile, glass, mirror, concrete, asphalt, brick, fused glass, bronze and anodized aluminum.
Commissioning agency: Oakland Cultural Arts Department/ City of Oakland, Percent for Art Program
Production assistance: Rachel Rodi
Installation assist: Rachel Rodi, Nadia Khastagir, Bobby Nicholson