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The center amesbury + Meadowhawk Studio
Come check us out in the Amesbury Mill Yard, June 16-29 2025!
In November of 2024, Catherine Debrocke reached out to me for suggestions on a mosaic project she had been working on for over a year with her students from the River Valley Charter School in Newburyport, MA. She already had a concept, a location, and a whole lot of hands ready to get to work.
I helped to conceptualize the drawing by adding geometric elements to contrast the organic shaped tiles created in Catherine's classroom and community workshops.
Over the course of 8 months, Catherine and her team hosted 27 tile making workshops throughout various businesses, homes, schools, breweries and libraries.
I worked on the digital plan, measurements, and approximately 800 ceramic border pieces to outline the thousands of various shaped tiles created throughout the Amesbury community.
the process of conceptualizing "the wave" mural
1. Conceptualizing
2. Design Dimensions
2. Design Dimensions
This was the original concept that I presented to Catherine. I added large "brick" tiles to contrast with the organic shaped tiles created throughout the Amesbury community.
2. Design Dimensions
2. Design Dimensions
2. Design Dimensions
This is the original student drawing underneath a grid created with the dimensions of the wall. From here, I had to stretch the drawing, add two colors, and keep all colors equally spaced apart.
3. Digital Tile Work
4. Team Visualization
4. Team Visualization
Using photoshop, I came up with the "brick" tile dimensions, leaving enough space so the organic tiles could reach all the way to the top.
4. Team Visualization
4. Team Visualization
4. Team Visualization
In order to get the whole team to visualize the final outcome and plan for missing pieces, we laid out all of the tiles onto the classroom floor.
5. Recreating the Grid
5. Recreating the Grid
5. Recreating the Grid
I created a grid system over the tiles using string. From here, a map was created, and the lines were drawn on the wall using a 1' grid system that match both the wall and the classroom floor.
6. Installation
5. Recreating the Grid
5. Recreating the Grid
Our crew then had to "follow the lines" to install the brick tiles I created, as well as the thousands of tiles created by the rest of the Amesbury community.
Digital vs. installation
Digital design
Changes were made to the design while the tiles were laying on the classroom floor. You can see the angles of the red, orange and yellow tiles were adjusted to incorporate more green tiles - the favorite glaze color among the crew.
Thank you amesbury!
From left to right: Catherine Debrocke, Executive Director
Aniya Tymowski, Student Design Contest Winner
Joanna Tomah, Meadowhawk Studio
Lizzy Keery, Co-Teacher, RVCS
Not pictured: Daniela Currie-Guitierez, Artist, Activist