Schnitzel The Day Of The Dead Dachshund
2016, 230 mm x 250 mm, recycled ceramics, plywood base. Commissioned as a gift to celebrate a beloved pet Dachshund called Schnitzel. I loved making this piece, I have and always will have a great love of dogs. The receiver of the gift was very pleased. "Original even better than the photo, Sian has actually captured Schnitzel's 'look'!"
Anatomical Heart With Swallows
2017, 260 mm x 600 mm, recycled ceramics, plywood base. I had been toying with this design in my head when I came across a small German vase that had veins of red through it and so began this anatomical heart. I put progress photos on Instagram and a woman in Australia fell in love with it and purchased it as soon as it was finished.
EK's Dove
2018, 250 mm x 380 mm, recycled ceramics, plywood base. I was commissioned to make this dove for a woman to remember her best friend. I have made many, many birds in the past, they hold so much meaning to me and many others. This one was an honour to make and one of my favourites. "Oh wow! That is just beautiful, even more lovely than I could imagine, the feathers are just incredible! And the gold stamp and the textures! I'm so in love with it!!!!!"
Vampire Skull
2016, 250 mm x 17 mm, recycled ceramics, plywood base. I love making skulls almost as much as I love making birds. They are such a bright joyous celebration of our existence as a human, though they are not to everyone's taste. They get snapped up quick, one even was gifted to musician Tiki Taane who is a skull lover like myself. This one is a particular favourite, Royal Doulton eyes and a flaming sacred heart. Many of the blues came from a broken family heirloom now gracing someone's home once again with pride.
The Marlin
2017, 225 mm diameter, recycled ceramics, iridescent tile, plywood base. I made this as a special wedding gift for a couple who love fishing and the ocean. I was given a broken bowl that had the perfect hues of pink sky above a wild ocean. I love the texture of this piece and how the spirals of the Bay Of Islands waters dance. I included iridescent tiles to make the marlin's body stand out with its striking shades of blue and yellow.
Geometric Bird Necklace
2016, 50mm x 30mm, recycled ceramics, silver chain, plywood base. I wanted to be a jeweller growing up but I never got there. As soon as I started making mosaics I wanted to see if I could make a pendant and I finally settled on a design that I thought would work. Making tiny mosaics such as these have their own unique challenges. These necklaces never fail to get compliments and I'm looking forward to seeing how far I can progress with them.
Sian Steward
I first came to make mosaics when an old friend offered to teach me when I was home in NZ on holiday. This was 5 years ago and after two days of pottering with her making fragments of lovely old plates into a flamingo design on a tea tray I was hooked.
Moving back to NZ from a busy life in London meant I was able to spread out and set up a home workshop to make more art.
Now making works under the name Flock Loves Art, I still find myself drawn to using vintage crockery for my mosaics. I’ve always been an avid Op-shop hunter-gatherer and find giving these colourful treasures a new and often very different story to tell extremely satisfying.
I’ve always been creative and am constantly inspired by vibrant colours and texture, nature, in particular birds, anatomy and Mexican art. My works have strong themes following on from these inspirations. I sell my pieces predominantly through social media and have sent them all over the world. I have made some interesting commissions over the years and love turning people’s ideas into a unique piece of art.
I like to challenge myself with exhibition pieces which are often bigger and much more complicated than my usual birds and skulls. I’m currently working on a goddess with a raven headdress for the 2018 NZMA Exhibition in Orewa.
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