By NICOLE VALICEK
THE art of mosaic is more than a hobby to Julee Latimer – instead, the Altona resident has made it her lifelong career.
The talented artist admits when not in her studio she thinks about it, when she sits down to read it’s a book on the subject and when at a computer the search engine history know the word mosaic well.
“It’s more full-time than my life,” Ms Latimer joked.
Art has been a part of the trained interior designer and colour psychologist’s life for more than 15 years, but it was on one of her first stays abroad that she discovered mosaic.
“I was living in Indonesia at the time and I wanted to learn mosaic after I saw an article in a magazine,” Ms Latimer said.
But the right material wasn’t available, so instead she started to paint her own ceramics, firing them in the oven.
The former painter said colour and texture inspired her to change artistic mediums.
“My work is very, very colourful, very funky, very textual – that’s what inspired me to make my mosaic colour and texture.”
The mosaic artist is currently working on a life-sized art chair covered in glass and that will be the fourth major sculpture she will exhibit in the upcoming Melbourne Flower and Garden Show.
The life-size creation that was made by Ms Latimer by first carving the sculpture out of foam and then layering it in fibreglass mess and concrete will be the second of its kind she has made, the first taking 246 hours.
“I love the idea you can sit on the piece of art.”
Ms Latimer has created more than 70 mosaic pieces and is the first Australian artist to be invited to the first International Festival of Contemporary Mosaic Art in Italy later this year.
“To do anything in mosaic in Italy is a massive honour.”
Ms Latimer’s upcoming exhibition in New York in April is called Goddess Flowers and features seven table top glass sculptural mosaics, each one inspired by one of the seven Greek goddesses.
“Every time you have an exhibition – doesn’t matter where gallery is – is always an exciting time.”
To see more of Julee’s work or to find out about her mosaic classes, visit juleelatimermosaics.com on the web.
