Greetings from Middle Earth - A history of Mosaic Art

The history of mosaic art can be traced back some 4,000 years or more. By the eighth century BC, there were pebble pavements, using different coloured stones to create patterns, although these tended to be unstructured decoration. It was the Greeks, who raised the pebble technique to an art form, with precise geometric patterns and detailed scenes of people and animals. By 200 BC, specially manufactured pieces ("tesserae") were being used to give extra detail and range of colour to the work. Using small "tesserae", sometimes only a few millimetres in size, meant that mosaics could imitate paintings. Many of the mosaics preserved at, for example, Pompeii were the work of Greek artists.

Traditional mosaic tiles that have been used through the ages are produced and cut by hand, for a slightly irregular hand worked character. A common traditional mosaic tile is the "Smalti", a type of glass initially produced in Venice since around the 1200s, now replicated by other manufacturers.

We are often asked for broken tiles, part sheets of mosaics or individual coloured tiles for creating Art Mosaics. This made us realise there is a market for small ceramic tiles suitable for art mosaics. Hence attached are details our new "Art Mosaic Tile" selection.

From our own test marketing we realise 'Art Mosaics" are a niche market, and for a retailer we believe it could be a profitable addition to your retail sales, important in this "challenging" retail environment. Traditionally mosaics are supplied glued to mesh and for mosaic artists, the tiles have to be removed from the mesh (Tip for your customers - Soak mesh mounted sheets in vinegar to get the tiles off and clean off all glue! Paper mounted sheets need just a few minutes in luke warm water).

Features of our new Middle Earth Art Mosaic Tiles are:

Tiles are glazed ceramic and are unique for this market
The small size allows complicated designs to be created

Tiles are supplied "loose" and are sold by weight
Available in four pack sizes - 5kg, 1kg, 0.2kg and 0.1kg

There are 38 tile colours
Attached are details on our Middle Earth Art Mosaic Tiles and a price list.

If you wish to stock these tiles or require further information please don't hesitate to contact us.

Kindest regards

Jeff and Guy and the team at Middle Earth Tiles

PS - Marketing tips

Contact your local High School or Poly Tech to see if they have Art Mosaic classes (potential customers)
Consider using your showroom as a class room after hours/weekends for Art Mosaic Classes (will get you new customers)