If you aren't following the Diversity Mural project in Orlando on the
facebook page, you might wonder what has been happening. So much! So much has been happening!
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| A great article was printed in the Orlando Sentinel |
Cherie Bosela, the owner of
Luna Mosaic Arts in Orlando, is now working full steam to prep the hearts for installation, which is a huge undertaking because there are over 700! And they are still coming in from all over the world! Volunteers have been gathering at Luna Mosaic Arts to help with pre-grouting, which will make installation much easier.
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| Volunteers grouting yellow hearts |
Laticrete, a company that specializes in top-of-the-line tile installation and surface treatment products is donating all of the thinset and grout for the project, including custom grout tints, so each heart will be grouted in its corresponding color, making the rainbow extra vibrant. Laticrete has been supportive of the mosaic community, often donating supplies for community projects and sponsoring the annual American Mosaic Summit.
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| Laticrete's Permacolor Select grout with custom purple tint! |
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| This is the first mural, in Shelton, WA. Laticrete donated materials for this, and I smeared and blended the grout between the hearts. You can see how bright it is. (I still need to finish grouting later this month.) |
One hiccup that has come up is that the Orlando Laticrete rep has urged us to have the paint removed from the wall before applying the hearts. Unfortunately, the quotes for sandblasting are more than we can afford to absorb. We are doing this project without a budget or any financial backing outside of a modest Go Fund Me effort, and while we have raised $3600 of the $5000 goal, we have had other expenses and can't cover the cost of paint removal. Cherie thinks she will have to grind off the paint behind each heart by hand, which will be extremely time consuming. The dedication is scheduled for September 21, so any help we can get with every aspect of the installation would be much appreciated.
If any readers have connections in Orlando and could help us figure out how to get the sandblasting sponsored or super-discounted, it sure would help.
Still, I am flying to Orlando for the dedication on September 21, and it is going to happen! While there, I'll be teaching a workshop on
Precision Glass Cutting for Mosaic at Luna Mosaic Arts that weekend, and there are still a few openings, so consider joining us if you are a mosaic artist interested in adding stained glass to your repertoire, or gaining more control of the material.
And one more reminder: Please share our online fundraiser to your community or to anyone you know who agrees strongly that the LGBTQIA community should not have to live in fear for their lives because of their gender presentation or who they love. Thank you!!
