SFO Mural Reveal

After six full weeks of installation, Untitled (Large Variation) is complete! Mosaika's Mike, Emily and Jessica were expected to finish on Monday, July 20th, but by the end of that day there were still a few things to do.  Jessica flew back to Montreal on the 21st, so Mike and Emily were responsible for wrapping things up.  I stopped by early on Tuesday to check on the caulking and a few other details. There is a slight gap between the mural and the steel frame around it, which could not be filled with grout due to the risk of cracking and damage in the event of an earthquake, so flexible caulking was used.  Mike and I settled on a medium grey, which I think works well as it blends in with the frame.  

By the end of the morning, it was clear that a few more hours of work were needed, so Mike asked me to stop in again at the end of the day.  Upon my return, the caulking was finished and Emily had completed all the remaining minor repairs.  Mosaika's installation team is accustomed to the intricacies of packing and shipping tools and supplies to the worksite, but they also acquire and amass a lot of equipment once they arrive on location.  Things like plastic buckets, extension cords, shop towels, trowels, plastic sheeting and tape--as well as volatile things, like epoxy and solvents--are not worth shipping (or carrying in personal luggage) to the worksite, so they are purchased when the the job commences.  So there were lots of little items left over at the end of the job.  Mike and I had already agreed that I would take the extra tile and grout, in case the mural requires repair.  So, I arrived late in the afternoon with a collapsible hand truck and a heavy duty storage bin.  The three of us sorted through the supplies and tools and decided what I would take, what would be shipped to the next job site and what would be thrown away.

As we worked, I was suddenly aware that these were our last moments together.  Even though we'd had a few opportunities to socialize and celebrate together during the team's stay in San Francisco, I realized that we'd have no chance for a final toast or a even a moment to see the work in full since the black curtain barrier, a mere eight feet from the wall and eight feet tall, obscured the bottom two-thirds of the mural.  In addition, the floor was still covered with masonite sheets, paper and plastic.  So, even though I felt a surge of excitement about being "finished," we did not have a chance to see the culmination of our efforts.

After a while, our sorting and packing was finished. Mike, Emily and I looked at each other and said, "well, this is goodbye."  I cursed myself for not thinking ahead and bringing a bottle of champagne.  We took a quick  'selfie,' gathered up our things, thanked each other, hugged goodbye and headed to the parking structure.  I can't begin to thank everyone at Mosaika.  They are talented, professional, creative, fun people and I so enjoyed every minute of our collaboration.

With Emily and Mike on the last day of installation.

Two days later, on July 23rd, a team meeting was scheduled for the reveal.  It was a large group: architects, construction managers, lighting experts and SFAC team members.  I confess that, at this point, I was nervous!  It was very difficult to work on the piece  for so long without being able to really SEE it.  I arrived a bit early.  The barrier was down. The temporary furniture and floor covering had been removed, the carpet had been cleaned and the wall around the mural had been painted.  Finally, I could see it, in full, looking very much as I'd hoped it would. Relief. Then happiness, as the team members appeared, one-by-one.  

On Friday night, July 24th, John Janca photographed the mural.  This was our third photoshoot.  We'll have one more in November, when the construction around the mural is complete and after all of the permanent furniture is installed.  It was really interesting to observe the passengers moving through the space.  Every few minutes, hundreds of people streamed through.  John took some wide shots of the mural as well as a few details, below. 

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[detail] Untitled (Large Variation)

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[detail] Untitled (Large Variation)

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[detail] Untitled (Large Variation)

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[detail] Untitled (Large Variation)

Now that I am back in the studio full time without my daily jaunts to SFO, I feel as though a big chunk of myself is a still out there in Terminal 3, alongside the San Francisco Bay.  Having grown up here and having spent most of my life in the Bay Area, it is an honor to have a permanent piece in my hometown airport.  

I am so grateful to the San Francisco Arts Commission, San Francisco International Airport and Mosaika Art & Design for this experience.  

SFO Mural Installation, Weeks 3 and 4

The SFO mural installation is rapidly nearing completion!  I have some wonderful photos of the process, thanks to John Janca of Artbot Photography.  

Last week, the Mosaika team finished adhering the mosaic to the wall, a very methodical process.  The various sections were marked with a grid before the mosaic was packed for shipping, which they match with a chalk line grid marked on the wall to ensure each section is installed in the correct location. They constantly check, measure and recheck their measurements; if the placement is off just a bit, the error is amplified over the width of the piece.  

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Emily and Valentina align a section of the mosaic to the grid.  

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Emily holds the edge of a section while Mike pounds it into the mortar bed.  

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Mike tests grout colors.  

We also began grout testing last week, which has proven to be one of the more unusual and challenging aspects of the piece. We are using six colors in order to exaggerate the illusion of spatial depth in the image.  Some shapes are meant to be in the background, while others should appear as if they are floating in the foreground.  We have narrowed the grout palette to orange, green, white, "biscuit" (cream), light grey and dark grey. 

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Emily scrapes grey grout out of the green shapes, which will be filled with green grout.

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Mike spreads dark grey grout onto the surface of the mural.

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Some shapes are so small that they require the grout to be applied with a dexterous fingertip.

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The team has a supply of tile in every color.  Small pieces are cut and placed as necessary, replacing those that may have fallen out during the installation.

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Emily keeps a photographic record of the installation. She finds creative ways to mark each work day. Day 12 is remembered by a photo of  Mike's gloved hand.  

Jessica joined the team after Valentina departed last week. She carefully cleans grout from a grout line intended for another color.  

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Jessica applies grout to the mural.  

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This section is fully grouted.  

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Grouting tools and materials.  

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This section has been grouted and rinsed.  

Last week, Saskia, one of the owners of Mosaika, was in San Francisco.  Over dinner one night, she told me that she wished that I was not watching the installation process. That, instead, I would see only the finished mural, perfectly installed.  I understand what she means.  During the process, the mural is covered with plastic, written notations, smudges of mortar, blue painter's tape and a lot of dust.  The grout lines show as dark outlines, accentuating the contours of each individual tile, resulting in a very fragmented image. The whole mosaic is rough, raw and unfinished.  

I understand Saskia's concerns, as it's how I feel when people see unfinished work in my studio.  I understood further when the grouting began, as the grout absolutely transforms the piece.  Individual tiles fall into place within forms.  The foreground and background come into focus.  Everything smooths out, yet the surface is slightly faceted. The shapes and colors assert themselves as I intended.  

Creating a ceramic mosaic at this scale is such an enormous undertaking, and it requires an act of faith.  Luckily, I am in good hands with Mosaika.  Their expertise is astonishing.  

I am so grateful for the opportunity to watch the installation process, and I'm fairly certain that, after five years, seeing the finished piece will be a hugely impactful experience for me. 

SFO Mural Installation, Week 2

The Installation of my mosaic mural is humming along!  The progress in the last few days is astonishing.  The photo above was taken yesterday.  When I left the Mosaika team today, they were about to install the last two sections of the bottom tier, including the one with my signature.  The middle tier is nearly complete, while the top tier has just one section installed.  

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Tools of the trade and extra pieces of tile. 

The days have a pleasant rhythm.  All tools and materials are stored in a locked room near the jobsite, so the first order of business is setting up for the day's work.  The team brings the tool crate and a stack of mosaic sections, layered in the order in which they will go on the wall.  Mortar is mixed away from the jobsite, since we don't have water or power nearby.  Once everything is in place, the team checks the previous day's work.  While the mosaic is largely intact, there are a number of tiles missing.  They will be replaced once the whole mosaic is on the wall.  The team has a supply of each color, so they'll be able to custom cut and fit the missing pieces.  

One of the most interesting aspects of the process is that we'll be using six different grout colors in order to create a sense of spacial layering in the piece.  Mike has begun to test and assign grout colors.  The grout transforms the mosaic and since the process is so complex, it will take at least two full weeks to complete.  Mike told me that, if we used a single color, the grouting could be done in two or three days.  

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Construction plan for the current phase of Terminal 3.  The bright green line indicates my mural site.

Every day, lots of people stop by the jobsite.  Architects, construction workers and SFAC project managers are regular visitors.  The construction team's Inspector of Records, Lewis, documents our progress for the purpose of confirming that we are actually using materials and techniques as we stated we would.  Lewis is very supportive of our work.  Today, he offered to take me on a hardhat tour of the broader jobsite.  My project is just a small part of an enormous remodeling and rebuilding of Terminal 3.  Lewis took me behind the scenes, and what he showed me was fascinating,  The construction team works around the clock, 24/7.  

One must be properly outfitted before entering the heavy construction area. Behind the scenes with Lewis.

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The wall at the back of this area (directly behind the rear scissor lift) is the temporary wall opposite my installation wall.  It is scheduled to be removed in one week, leaving this area open.  When complete, one will be able to view my mural from a distance of about 60 feet.

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Construction in Terminal 3. 

After my tour, I had a greater perspective on the enormity of this project-- a macro view of the vertical and horizontal spread of the construction project.  Upon rejoining the mosaic team, my focus shifted to the micro once again.  The photo below is the back of one of the mosaic sections, showing hand-cut edges very clearly, as well as notations in pencil. The sticky plastic sheeting that holds it together has been removed from the backside so that it can be applied to the mortar.

Back side of one of the mosaic sections.

The last section of the bottom tier of the mosaic 

Just as I was leaving the job site for the day, the team pulled out the last section of the bottom tier of the mosaic.  My "signature" (my real signature is an illegible scrawl) was added after the final quality check in December 2013, after the mosaic had been packed. I hadn't thought of signing the piece on the front, as I customarily sign my paintings on verso, but Mosaika convinced me that the mosaic should be signed.    "A37: Bottom" refers to the bottom portion of the last section of tier A that was held back for the additional glazing required to "sign" the piece.  Mike told me today that he brought this section to San Francisco in his suitcase.  

SFO Mural Installation Commences

At last! The mural installation is underway at the San Francisco International Airport. Untitled (Large Variation)  has been sitting in art storage in two 1200 pound crates for nearly eighteen months. After all this time, it is exciting to begin the installation process.

And what a process it is! The team at Mosaika in Montreal worked on the piece for nine months, assembling over 70,000 hand-glazed, hand-cut ceramic tiles onto a full-scale printed template of the design. I traveled to Montreal for the final quality check in December 2013 and we examined every inch of the mural, checking the placement of each color and shape. Mosaika's artists walked on the piece in their stocking feet, making changes as necessary.  

Mosaika artists making changes to the mural before it is packed and shipped to San Francisco.

As each section passed muster, it was overlaid with clear, sticky-backed plastic sheeting and then labeled and cut into sections small enough to fit into shipping crates.  The sections were marked with a grid that corresponds with a matching grid on the job site wall.  Since the piece is quite large (10' x 108' 8 ½") it is essential to maintain proper alignment of the sections.  

Artists seal the mosaic between two sheets of clear plastic and draw a grid onto the surface. It is then cut into smaller sections for crating and shipping.

The reverse side of the mosaic.  Sticky plastic sheeting is removed from the back and the section is applied to the wall with mortar.

Installation began on June 8.  The first week was spent preparing the wall surface and managing the complex logistics for installing within a "sterile" (post-security) area of SFO.  Mosaika's installation team (Mike, Emily, Chloe and Valentina) is utterly professional and unflappable, stringent security rules at SFO notwithstanding.

The mural is being installed beginning at the bottom left corner.  The bottom edge and left edge have been cut and squared to fit within the metal frame built for the piece, while the top and right edges will be trimmed on site so that they fit just so.  The installers have a supply of extra tiles in all colors so that they can cut new pieces to fit in the event that pieces are lost or damaged during the process. 

Mike and Emily checking the alignment of a section of the mural.

Six sections of the bottom row installed.  The plastic layer is still adhered to the piece.  It will be removed before grouting.

Day 2: Chloe and Valentina remove plastic from the surface of the mosaic. 

Day 2:  Progress!

It is a joy to watch the team and to witness their expertise at the highest possible level of execution.  I will be stopping in as often as possible during the installation to observe and photograph so I can share this exciting process with you.  

Countdown to SFO Mural Installation

Yesterday, I attended an installation meeting at SFO with the Mosaika installation team, SFO team members, security officials, members of the architectural team and construction crew, and representatives from the San Francisco Arts Commission.  We crammed ourselves into a small conference room to discuss the logistics for the installation of Untitled (Large Variation) in Terminal 3.  Since the mural will be installed in a "sterile" (post-security) area, we must coordinate with SFO security to make sure that we are in compliance with all rules regarding personnel, tools and installation protocol.  It's complicated.

The team from Mosaika has been here for a week, working on a project at SF General Hospital.  I visited Mosaika at their studio in Montreal twice during the fabrication of the SFO mural, but met the installation team for the first time yesterday.  They are absolute professionals and, unlike me, they were unfazed by the avalanche of airport information, rules and protocols regarding security checks, airport badging and the like.  I confess I felt a tad overwhelmed at how complex a project it will be to bring in personnel, tools, equipment and the mosaic itself, which waits in 3 crates, each weighing around 1200 pounds.  

We will begin installation as soon as Mosaika is finished at SF General, most likely on June 8th.  It has been nearly five years since the SFAC commissioned the piece, and it's almost hard to believe that this is really happening.  I look forward to sharing more once we begin.  

The team surveys the area in Terminal 3 where we will install the mural.