ONE LATICRETE ONE FAMILY Event for Central America Goes the Distance

ONE LATICRETE ONE FAMILY Event for Central America Goes the Distance

June 20, 2018


The ONE LATICRETE ONE FAMILY event for the Central American teams was held at the LATICRETE plant in Costa Rica. With both our Honduras and Panama teams joining in via video conference, we had over 100 team members!

LATICRETE Costa Rica team

LATICRETE Honduras team

LATICRETE Panama team

During the day, LATICRETE executives shared photographs about the history of the company, its evolution, as well as key messages of our values and the great global family that we are. 

“From the bottom of my heart, I am proud of what this "family" has achieved. A winning team of more than 90 people in 4 countries of Central America” - Luis Alfonso Fernández, Director General of Central America

“When we invite people to work as a team, we always look for everyone to have or try to participate in an equal way, but we know that we are different. What we all saw at our ONE LATICRETE ONE FAMILY event in Central America was that everyone was very focused on their teams to do their best: a mosaic of representation of our company with the number one. The success of this event makes us think that we are going to repeat it in the coming years.” - Rivaldo Tiscoski, Regional Director, Latin America & Caribbean

David Rothberg, CEO / Chairman of LATICRETE International (2nd generation LATICRETE) addressed the teams live via facetime. In his message he said, “As a family, we will support your efforts to reach your personal and professional goals.  It is what families do.”

At the end of the presentations, the Panama and Honduras teams had a great team breakfast.  In Costa Rica the team worked on a mosaic project in which several teams created the LATICRETE logo and the word ‘1’ out of mosaics to reinforce that we are a family, a team and a heart that always looks for results. 

LATICRETE Costa Rica mosaic making activity

Completed mosaic projects

Employees had great things to say about the event:

“The ONE LATICRETE ONE FAMILY activity in Costa Rica was excellent! We learned about the history and trajectory of the company worldwide and the motivational talks of our leaders makes us feel proud to be part of the LATICRETE family. The event united us as a team and shows us that together we can achieve great things. I’m very proud to be a part of the event, the effort and work that we all do and of course belonging to the LATICRETE family." - Hernando Herrera González, Assistant of Research and Development Laboratory

“ONE LATICRETE ONE FAMILY helped me improve my contact networks with all LATICRETE business units, and reaffirm that I am in a global company that seeks to grow their employees personally and professionally. I hope to participate in more activities of this kind. It’s great to understand where we are going as a company. Thanks LATICRETE Costa Rica!” - Vivian Morales, Costa Rica Sales Advisor

LATICRETE Anti-Fracture and Waterproofing Products Help Rejuvenate 50-Year Old Mural on St. Jude Chapel

Guest Author: Julie Richey, Mosaic Artist

Photo: Danny Fulgencio

The Genesis Mosaic on the façade of the St. Jude Chapel on Main Street in downtown Dallas was in need of repair to maintain its stability and restore its beauty. MIT professor Gyorgy Kepes’ 1968 mosaic was suffering from two major fractures, smaller cracks, and mildew under the surface. Julie Richey and Cher Goodson put together a team to complete the arduous task. Six weeks after beginning, the Chapel was ready to celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2018.

St. Jude Chapel
Photo: Julie Richey

The Fracture

This is an example of the state of the mosaic when we removed the silicone that was added years ago to stop the fallout of tiles.

Fractured mosaic

Photo: Julie Richey

Mapping the Tesserae

Clear mosaic tape was used to capture the andamento, or pattern of the tile before chiseling to remove tiles surrounding the fracture. Tiles were removed in six-inch sections.

Tile mosaic pattern

Photo: Julie Richey

The Fixers

The principal players involved in the restoration project: Cher Goodson, owner of Art Restorations of Dallas; Plano mosaicist Lynne Chinn of LCMosaics.com; Reverend Jonathan Austin, St. Jude Chapel chaplain; Julie Richey of Julie Richey Mosaics, and Callie Heimburger, conservator at Art Restorations.

The Historic Palette

We were so fortunate to have a long-time connection with Miotto Mosaics of Carmel, NY. Stephen Miotto is the godson of the founder of Venetian Art Mosaics Studios of the Bronx, NY, and when that business closed, he took over the stock of Italian glass tiles. This allowed us to pull colors from the same stock used to make the original mosaic. Venetian Art Mosaics Studios was responsible for several wonderful architectural mosaics created for Dallas institutions in the 1960s.

Removing the Crumbling Substrate

Callie and Julie use small stone chisels to remove the cracked and crumbling mortar. 

Removing crumbling mortar

Photo: Danny Fulgencio

Surprise!

It was understood when we embarked on this preservation project that there were possibly more areas damaged than appeared on the surface. We were disappointed to find a horizontal fracture invisible from the street, which traversed the two vertical fractures. This fracture was treated with the same care as the verticals. Fortunately it wasn't too deep.

Color Palette

We removed loose and damaged tiles surrounding the two vertical fractures. 140 distinct colors were counted in these two, thin cross sections. This didn't begin to quantify the colors on the outer reaches of the mosaic: malachite and lime greens, azures, violets, pinks, tangerines, and 24-karat gold leaf tiles.

Eliminating Mildew

Mildew growing behind the tiles forced many of them to delaminate. The fractures, most likely caused by the building's settling event, then leaked water due to improper flashing on the roof. Now that the roof has been repaired and the mosaic is not subjected to water damage from behind, the fracture is dry. The mildew was neutralized with a bleach gel.

The Curve

An interesting detail of the mosaic was the curve on the southern side of the façade. This area was almost completely covered in 24-karat gold leaf Venetian glass—beautiful—but very thin tile. The mortar here was very fragile. Attempts to prepare the surface for just a few tiles to be reseated resulted in twice as many falling out. We waterproofed the area and made an invisible repair.

Recreating the Sections

Once we carefully documented the areas to be removed, cleaned the tiles, and received replacements from the stock at Miotto Mosaics Studios in NY, we were ready to rebuild. Using both printed “before” photos of the mosaic and our iPads and iPhones (for easy enlargement of the details), we were able to identify original tiles and put them right back next to their neighbors. A classic example of ancient craft and modern technology working together.

Puzzle Time

Careful attention to color, shape, and pattern allowed our three “puzzlers” to rebuild the missing sections. The lids served as “trays” for each page of the rebuilt sections.

Beginning the Rebuild

Julie Richey begins at the bottom of the small fracture, replacing tiles from the pattern.

Placing the Anti-Fracture Membrane

We were fortunate to have a great local rep from LATICRETE International, the company that provided our mortars, grouts, and anti-fracture compounds. In this case, it was HYDRO BAN® waterproofing membrane / anti-fracture fabric to the rescue. We coated the seams with HYDRO BAN® liquid applied waterproofing, then applied thinset and the custom-cut membrane. This provided a stable base for the replacement mosaic, and we are confident that the membrane will keep the old fractures at bay. 

Placing LATICRETE HYDRO BAN 

Photo: Danny Fulgencio

Re-Piecing Begins

It takes three to accomplish this task: Callie on the right is working on the thinner fracture; the wider fracture requires a tracker (Lynne on the left) and a fixer (Julie in the middle) to keep the tesserae and patterns in line.

That Tile, That Spot

Highly detailed photos allowed the team to ensure the exact tiles, based on their characteristics, were put back in place.

The Red Wash

Conservator Callie Heimburger created a special “wash” of Indian red and burnt umber to unify the design by coloring joints and mortar to match the intensity of the glass tesserae. This process was used in the installation of the original mosaic in 1968. We know this because we found traces of the pinkish-red stain under the loose tiles.

Almost Finished

Once the replacement of tiles along the fractures was complete, it was time to spot-grout low areas, and clean and replace randomly missing tiles across the façade.

About the Artist

Texas artist Julie Richey has been making mosaics for more than 20 years, creating custom residential and commercial installations in the US, Italy, Spain, and Mexico. Her mosaics and sculptures have been exhibited across the US and in Italy at the biennial Ravenna Mosaico Festival and at the Orsoni Smalti Veneziani Foundry in Venice as part of the Orsoni Grand Prize for Mosaic in 2009.

www.juliericheymosaics.com

Creating Memories While Constructing a Lasting Tribute During the 2017 Mosaic Marathon

Guest Blog by our friend Sue Majewski (SAMA member and Marathon Coordinator)

Shared with Permission of the Society of American Mosaics Artists

Finished mosaic mural created by the Society of American Mosaic Artists
Photo: Sue Majewski

2017 Mosaic Marathon

Mural created at the Society of American Mosaic Artists (SAMA) Annual Conference, Detroit, MI; and installed May 8, 2017 at the Children's Hospital of Michigan

When you have a friend like mine, one that inspires and impresses you with her kindness, whimsy, exactitude, and infallible attitude, you tend to stick close. Knowing every time you're together, you teach each other about life, love, and mosaics. What could be better? 

Then this wonderful friend starts talking crazy about the 2017 SAMA American Mosaic Summit in Detroit. “I'm gonna do it! I may be going through the most intense personal issues right now, but, by golly, I'm gonna make this happen! I'm gonna devote all my efforts into making this a reality. Are you coming along?" Really, who could hesitate?! 

Crazy talk, maybe. But how can you not support Joan Schwartz when she looks you right in the eye and says “I really could use your help here.” Okay, I’m in. What’s it gonna take? “I need you to head up the Mosaic Marathon.” Al-righty!

Joan Verdiano
Photo by Tim Stassines 

My good friend, Detroit artist Grace Serra, has worked as a public art coordinator and art educator for almost 30 years. She began the Children's Hospital of Michigan (CHM) Healing Arts Program in 2004, and listened carefully when I described a project that about 250 of my closest, most talented friends could work on together, ultimately donating the handmade piece to a final recipient. 

She guided me to CHM (dedicated since 1886 to providing the highest quality of care to children and adolescents and the first children's hospital in the state) which was building a new emergency entrance that included a long, blank wall, which would be viewed by children coming out of triage and into bays for further treatment and evaluation. It was decided that by creating an uplifting subject, they might be calmed as they continued their journey to improved health. The illustrative theme throughout CHM is safari animals. During my first visit there I found beautiful, colorful murals of different wild animals at each level of the parking structure. In the hospital, each floor is designated by a different animal. Using this information, I drew up a cartoon based on the available 48” tall by 96” wide space.

The Mosaics Artists of Michigan (MAM) is a unique group of like-minded folks from all over our beautiful state. The combination of talent, creativity, and personality is evident at every second-Saturday meeting. Every other year or so, we take on a project—a collaboration— for donation. So when I started calculating the amount of work involved in producing this mural, I knew I could count on our group to get things done.

First, we prepared the substrate by tracing the full-sized patterns on three panels of wallboard with marker. Then, we used a fourth sheet to cut out additional pieces that would define certain aspects by emphasizing depth. I used my jigsaw, set at a 45-degree angle, to cut them out, after which they were adhered with thinset to the base panels. Many of our members were there in the final hours of preparations, helping to ensure a result we were all proud of. Their help and devotion will always be remembered.

Kim Wozniak of Wit’sEnd.com and Smalti.com donated all of the Mexican smalti. In estimating colors and quantities beforehand, I found it was easiest to simply order mixes—blue mix for the sky, green mix for leaves, etc. Kim also donated her personally designed frames for the finished panels which her son, Jesse, helped assemble. 

LATICRETE International also sponsored the Mosaic Marathon, donating SPECTRALOCK® PRO Grout (epoxy grout), as well as Glass Tile Adhesive (non-sag, polymer fortified adhesive mortar that is specifically formulated for use in glass tile applications), which was individually mixed and used to apply the smalti to the wallboard panels. 

Starting Tuesday, May 2, I set everything up in the Duluth Conference Room of the Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center and we were officially ready for our volunteers to begin the Marathon.

Photo by Tim Stassines 

The atmosphere was one that Marathon volunteers have come to expect—sharing techniques, making new acquaintances, catching up with old friends, and mingling the sound of laughter with the snapping of tiles. We worked long, hard hours, determined to complete it on time. And we did!

Photo by Tim Stassines 

I am so very proud of this project. From start to finish I was honored and humbled by the faith everyone had in us and the fabulous time we had, creating memories while constructing a lasting tribute from our talented SAMA friends to our city. What a great experience—definitely a bucket list week for me! Meeting my ‘mosaic crushes’ and spending time connecting with creative personalities from all over the world! 

Sue Majewski sits in front of the finished piece
Photo by Tim Stassines

Much gratitude and positive, creative energy from me to all of the productive, imaginative souls we were able to share our time with. 

Born and raised on the east side of Detroit, Sue Majewski completed a graphics degree at Wayne State University. Art has always been a passion and creating mosaics was an easy transition, having dabbled in every other media available. “Once I created my first mosaic, I knew I was hooked.” Acquiring a kiln enabled Sue to create her own handbuilt pieces, offering even more variety to her style. sumajetski@yahoo.com

More Incredible Mosaic Art

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Incredible Mosaic Work depends on Laticrete installation materials

Mosaic art by:

Don Macdonald
Symmetry Mosaics
PO Box 1733 Noosaville BC
Qeensland, 4566 Australia

0412 050 500
 

Incredible Mosaic Work

Click on photo to enlarge

This Incredible Mosaic Work depends on Laticrete installation materials

Mosaic art by:

Don Macdonald
Symmetry Mosaics
PO Box 1733 Noosaville BC
Qeensland, 4566
0412 050 500

Mosaic Works of Art

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Contact us to discuss your next project, arrange a demo or request samples

Mosaic Art

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Hello Henry,

Here's the latest Laticrete One Step project: my alma mater, University of Dallas, commissioned the school seal in Italian smalti and gold for the reception room at the President's home. He was jazzed - it looks great next to the grand piano that none of us have the skill to play!

Sporting the Laticrete swag hat!


Cheers,

Julie
Julie Richey Mosaics
www.juliericheymosaics.com

Livermore VA Hospital Mosaic Mural Finished

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Livermore VA Hospital Mosaic Mural Finished

Henry,

After all this time it looks like we're going to finish. All that's left is caulking the expansion joints. The local paper did an article on the mosaic (The Independent). Once again I'd like to thank you and your company for all the support, without you we couldn't have done this.

Once again thanks for everything, and thanks to Jeff Carder and Dale Foster for all their help!

Dave Wetherell

Your Work of Art

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Santa Barbara Seal Mosaic

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The 2014 award for Public Open Space was presented to Mosaic Artist Betsy Gallery for her mosaic of the Seal of the City of Santa Barbara, which forms part of the award given to The Sea Landing Walkway at the Santa Barbara Harbor.

Alfred Ramirez MFA installed the mosaic.

Erin Carroll ASLA of Arcadia Studio was the project landscape architect.

Betsy fabricated the mosaic of the Seal of the City of Santa Barbara using Dal porcelain tile. As a secret extra she put Laticrete Glow-in-the-Dark grout behind the lighthouse windows. Take a look on a dark, but not stormy, night!

Betsy designs and fabricates mosaics in Santa Barbara for private and public clients.

More info here: http://www.santabarbarastudioartists.com/betsy-gallery/

Pool Mosaics

"Installed!! Blue skies in the forecast in the foreseeable future. I am SO glad to be finished with this installation, and happy that it went well, finally. Thanks to all for the helpful advice. Created with Mexican Smalti, kiln formed glass fish, and glow in the dark outlines on the compass. SpectraLock grout. 254 Platinum thinset. A couple glasses of wine to wind down and celebrate."

Dianne Sonnenberg Mosaics

Pool Tile Presentation - Miami !

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Greg Andrews and Amy Denny will be co-presenting at TISE East in Miami this October. You are invited to attend this fantastic seminar where they will share their expert knowledge about glass tile in pools. 

They will walk through case studies, discuss best practices, and spend valuable Q and A time. Their commitment and their legacy is to elevate this industry through education and collaboration! Please join them - and share this invite with anyone you know who wants to elevate their craft!

UK Mosaic Art Training

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UK class photo

"Here’s the image from the two workshops taught by Emma Biggs and I at West Dean College in Chichester, UK.  Everyone was really pleased with the Laticrete products and you have some new converts.  Participants came from the UK, US, Australia, The Netherlands, Canada and Portugal.

Many many thanks for Laticrete’s continued support, Sonia"

S O N I A     K I N G

m o s a i c  a r t i s t

"Mosaic is hard. Art is harder."

http://www.mosaicworks.com

http://www.facebook.com/SoniaKingMosaics

VA Mosaic

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Mosaic at the Livermore VA

"Here's a couple of recent pictures of our mosaic at the Livermore VA. We're more than halfway through at this point. My goal is to have it completed before Thanksgiving.

Thanks for everything
Dave Wetherell"

Laticrete in Istanbul

"Many many thanks for making the workshop such a good experience with Laticrete Multimax.
 Kind regards, Sonia"

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"Here's the official class pic from the 2014 Istanbul Intensive Mosaic Workshop with Sonia King. Participants came from Sweden, Turkey, Tunisia and the US and were able to use Multimax, the best adhesive ever!

Left to right:
Lesley Kingston, Australia
Chloe Harlow, US
Apryl Begay, US
Leila Zahmoul, Tunisia
Emelie Solklippa, Sweden
Sonia King, US
Hanna Westin Skog, Sweden
Gülay Yilmaz, Turkey
Lynne Timm, US
Resa McCreary, US
Noel Hensley, US
Ann Andrus, US

Let me know where you use the pic and I'll link to it.

Many many thanks for sending the BEST adhesive for us to use, Sonia"

Mosaic Art Competition

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A GREAT Tile Contracting Firm

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HBR & Laticrete Australia Rep Nick Collett visiting with The Orchid Group

Don's message to me after our visit:

"Henry,

Thanks for taking the time to come and meet me and my guys.  As you well know I have been a long time supporter of the Laticrete brand and am looking forward to partnering with you in the future as we take our project onto the world stage.

Regards,

Don Macdonald"

The Orchid Group

Noosaville, Qld Australia

info@theorchidgroup.com.au

www.theorchidgroup.com.au

Mosaic Art Competition

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What ?

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OK, so WHAT exactly are we seeing here ? Why ?

Hint - Glass Mosaic Tiles

Mosaic Tile Pool Jobsite

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Project Details

Tile / Stone Subcontractor: Crown Pools
Project Name: Crown Pools Residential Pool Project
Project City: Brisbane
Project State/Territory/Province: QLD
Project Country: Australia

Project Area: 15 m²
Climate: Tropical
Project Description: 335 used to install the natural Stone. 4237/211 Grey used to install the mosaics. PERMACOLOR® used to grout.

Product(s) Used:
LATICRETE® 211 Powder
335 Premium Flexible Adhesive
LATICRETE® 4237 Latex Additive
LATICRETE® PermaColor™ Grout

Click here for more info