Mosaic Marble "Ornament" c. 1936

Gordena Jackson made this mosaic marble “Ornament” and, wow, the level of detail and the sheer patience involved is something else! Can you imagine the quiet focus, the meditative state needed to place each tiny piece? It's a bit like life, isn't it? Piece by piece, we create something bigger than ourselves. Look at how the green and brown squares create this intricate border with an almost dizzying effect that somehow keeps the composition together. The way the individual tesserae of the mosaic glint and catch the light, I can almost feel Jackson’s presence. I can just imagine Jackson finding joy in this process, almost like building a world from scratch. As an artist, I find it's these tiny, deliberate acts that often speak the loudest. Gordena Jackson really makes me consider the power of small gestures and how they create a world of their own.