
Irene breaking stones for her mosaic work with an anvil and hammer
Merhaba from Turkey folks!! I’ve got so much to blog about but internet access can be sporadic whilst on my travels and now is the first time I’ve had a chance to write anything. I’m currently in Turkey but this post is about a great mosaic artist I found in Mykonos.
Irene Sirianou has a shop in Agios Vlassis,Mykonos (about the size of a shoebox) in which she sells and makes mosaics based on the ancient designs from the nearby island of Delos. As with most Greek artists I have found the web is a work in progress but here’s the website. Delos has great mythological significance being the birthplace of Apollo.
Irene was a tour guide there for many years and knows a lot about the designs and their significance. She now works in mosaics made from a kind of man made conglomerate stone (as far as we can understand). It breaks very easily and into VERY small pieces. You can see long sticks of in the background of the photo of her breaking it up on the special pointed anvil she uses.
Lucky for me she had just arrived from Athens when we arrived at the shop and could have a chat with her. In the non tourist season Irene goes around to all the small islands and teaches the kids mosaics. She invited me to come back and do something with her another time. I hope she was serious!! I’d love too.
Love and Art
Sarah-Jane