Artist Interview - Carol Lancour of Mid Century Mosaics

With Marin Handmade's inaugural event coming up in just a couple of short weeks, we wanted to bring you all a sneak peek of just who and what you'll be seeing when you join us on October 14! Over the next several days we'll be bringing you profiles of the eclectic group of artists we have pulled together. We hope you'll be as excited as we are to meet all of these talented artists and crafters.

To kick things off, we bring you Carol Lancour of Mid Century Mosaics (www.midcenturymosaics.etsy.com). Carol creates beautiful and original mosaics and garden pieces in Marin County's northernmost town of Novato. Thank you Carol for helping us get things off to a great start... Cheers!

Tell us a bit about yourself.

I have a BA in fine art and an MA in art history from Michigan State University.  I’m a transplanted Midwesterner living in the North Bay of California.  "Lost in time" accurately describes me.

What kind of artist are you? And what first drew you to that particular medium?

Mosaic has been my medium for the past 10 years.  I realized that I don’t enjoy painting and it’s always been a chore for me.  I like doing large scale mosaic installations, walls and floors, because I become part of the structure of that building.  It becomes more sculptural.  I love working with glass because it is a fragile material that can be transformed into something strong enough to walk on. Glass also comes in every color imaginable.

Apart from creating things, what do you do?

I am a research analyst for a hotel broker.

Who is your greatest creative influence?

The painter, John Singer Sargeant.  The way he captures light in his paintings is particularly beautiful.  He wore a suit when he painted and never got his hands dirty.  I also like that guy who does “The Oatmeal”. 

Please describe your creative process.

I become obsessed with a motif (martini glasses, hummingbirds drinking out of martini glasses, olive branches, cats and dogs) and then abstract it and interpret it in glass.  I also look at art and garden books and drink wine for inspiration.

What handmade possession do you most cherish?

The ugly cinderblocks my husband dug out of our backyard.  I made them into an herb garden planter by stacking them 2 high and making them beautiful with an olive branch mosaic.  

What is it about living in the North Bay that most inspires your creativity?

The beautiful quality of the light and the fog.  Also, the abundance of birds and flowers.  Nature is my greatest inspiration and it is truly lovely and fragrant here.

Where do you see yourself in ten years?

Living in Venice like Peggy Guggenheim.  No wait…since I hate moving and traveling I will most likely be in my back yard sitting by the swimming pool I plan to dig after I download the directions for “digging your own swimming pool” from eHow.  I could tile it myself!