Pete Jauneika
Normally when I create a piece of mosaic glass art, I have a fairly clear idea in my head of what I am trying to achieve. Design, colour, meaning, swirls around in my head and crystallise well before I start cutting.
But with this piece I wanted to try a completely different approach. No preconceived ideas on colour or form. Every piece I cut, colour I chose, shape I used, direction I took was a decision made not by me but by the pieces I had already laid. So it was as if the only decision I made was to choose the very first piece (did I really choose that?). Every other piece was predetermined, fated to “be” by the ones that came before. It was like the story of the flapping of a butterfly wing on one side of the world resulting in a hurricane on the other side. It was Karma, fate, destiny, serendipity.
But then I thought, does that mean that this piece did, in fact, create itself? Was I simply its tool to bring it into being, following its instructions as it grew?
This suggests that it had control over me, that it was therefore, in fact, sapient.
And by extension does this mean that everything, literally everything in the universe is interconnected and communicating? That everything we do affects the universe and everything in the universe affects us and is talking to us in its own way. Maybe we have just lost the ability to listen to anything above our own voices.
73 x 66cm
Karma Psychedelephant
Having been raped by the god Poseidon in the temple of Athena, the innocent Medusa then undergoes the ultimate in victim shaming when she is turned into a snake haired Gorgon with eyes that can turn to stone anyone she sees, by the goddess Athena.
Perseus - the mortal son of Zeus is sent on a quest to collect the head of a Gorgon by king Polydectes and of course he chooses Medusa to be the victim, yet again!
He is armed and tooled up by the Hesperides and guided on his journey by both Athena and Hermes.
Creeping up, sword in hand, on the sleeping Medusa in her dark cave, her snakes warn her of the impending danger, but it is too late.
Having decapitated Medusa with the sword of Zeus, Perseus then stuffs the head into his shopping bag and uses the cap of invisibility to make his escape from the Gorgon sisters.
He then goes on a murderous spree with the head which, even after death, has retained its terrible power. Wielded like a weapon of mass destruction, Perseus turned hundreds of people into geological formations. Compare that to Medusa’s lifetime where her kill score was zero! WMD in the hands of the immature is a pretty bad idea!
The eyes are flat mirror glass but I set the sections of iris at very slightly different aspect angles in deeper glue to give them a jewelled look like the facets of a diamond
Medusa
“Khari” is the actual name of this lion who lives at Howletts wild animal park, near Canterbury in Kent.
Khari has taken 10 weeks to get to this stage and has been an absolute labour of love and dedication. I’ve used a different, and for me new, technique because I wanted to capture and replicate the complexity and flow of his fur. It also allowed me to get a deeper feeling in his eyes and may be a style I use for all future eyes, even though it demands more work. They are so important to me. For me his expression is truly majestic and I think his strength comes right out at you.
53 x 65cm
Khari
About Pete Jauneika
Peter Jauneika is a self-taught mosaic artist working with both glass and ceramics since 1999, originally as a hobby, creating pots, tables and wall art when time allowed.
In 2020 he took the decision to take early retirement from a demanding 40 year corporate IT role in order to further develop his passion for mosaic art.
The “portrasaic” brand was consequently set up in order to concentrate on portraiture of both abstract and “real life” human, pet and wildlife subjects. He became fascinated by the special qualities of glass, its reflectivity, iridescence, mirror and even its tactile nature, which he now uses exclusively to bring light and vibrant life to his creations.
Peter’s lively presence on social media, principally Instagram under the “@portrasaic” tag is fast earning him a world-wide appeal as an established and accomplished artist in the medium, selling to a global audience. Working in collaboration with and inspired by artists of many different art-forms, in many different countries, he constantly looks for new ways to both embrace a mosaic tradition which is over 4,000 years old and yet also bring it right up to date with new techniques, materials and styles. A speciality of his is to examine ancient myths, telling their stories in both text and mosaic form, in episodes on social media which both engage and fascinate his audience as the piece is being built. Although creating these pieces as a mosaic artist can be a long and ofttimes isolating experience Peter is keen to offset this by the engagement of a huge community like-minded artists using the best facets of social media to provide mutual support, interest and inspiration.
