Sketch for Fire Flower Mosaique 1960

Alla Horska made this sketch for a mosaic with watercolor and pencil; I imagine she was mapping out color relationships and how they might work together in stone or glass. See how Horska is using sharp, angular forms against a warm, washy background. I think the artist might have been trying to harness the energy of the cosmos and put it into a controlled geometry, or maybe even domesticate it! I love the star shapes scattered around, as if a cosmic event has just occurred, and there are sparks or embers floating around. The central image is of a ‘fire flower’, with hot reds and oranges coiling around each other, as though energy is being released. Making mosaics is a slow, deliberate process, and this painting on paper allowed Horska to play with an immediacy that is very appealing. It’s like she’s speaking to other artists across time. It makes me want to run to the studio and start splashing some paint around myself.