Back in 2005, I visited Cloisters in New York for the very first time. I came
across a 13th century fresco of a lion. This fresco reminded me of someone whom I
owe my developmental progress as a person. I worked under
his supervision for many years including the time when I worked as a geologist
in the Russian Arctic. He had a unique charisma, a unique alloy of energy, a
willingness to succeed, a hard character and a special kind of charm. His name
was Leo A. Savostin. He was a person with a quite
astounding biography and he lived a remarkable life. This work is my tribute to him.
What happens when you come into contact with a completely
unknown environment? You don't know how to behave, act or what to expect, you
know nothing. Yet you possess an inner strength, charisma, a willingness to win, to go on... You have your
personality.
What I did, was I gave my 13th century lion "Leo"
a time machine. All of a sudden he is swept to the modern world. Now he is
stuck here forever. What to do?
In my mosaic there is a powerful contrast between a 13th
century lion "Leo" and a very intense and bright pattern. You can see
him walking with a goal of getting out. The walls start to crumble before him. Where
they lead, nobody knows, but "Leo" will succeed anywhere.
The colors used in this mosaic were the main challenge. I
wanted to create a very dynamic, very contrasted and a extremely modern
environment. Not just Black and White, but insane! The colors chosen put a
heavy yet energetic feel on the surroundings of "Leo". This 13th
century lion was meant to look very much like the fresco in Cloisters yet at
the same time retaining the look of a real person.
This mosaic required a lot of saw work to create the delicate
pieces of "Leo". This is my very first glass mosaic. I used a special
transparent glue to attach the pieces to the glass base and afterwords grouted
with black grout. This mosaic can be seen with light coming through and without
it.
Size 45 x 60 cm.
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