ed chapman’s ceramic shard mosaic portraits

Interested in bringing a modern twist to the ancient art of mosaics, self-taught artist Ed Chapman hand cuts thousands of ceramic tile fragments and attaches each one individually to board, achieving surprisingly accurate portraits.

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Bob Marley, ceramic tile fragments

Over the last decade Chapman has used several materials for his mosaic art including paper, glass and metal. He eventually moved on to ceramic tile shards, which provide him with the most realistic results, though he continues to experiment with other materials like sugar cubes and pennies. While I appreciate all of his work, the ceramic mosaics have a  classy, elegant quality to them that appeals to the more formal side of me.

Dreamweaver, ceramic tile fragments

“The fragmented results represent the fragmented nature of our lives and our own unique make-up.” Ed Chapman

London Girl, ceramic tile fragments

The UK artist’s portfolio is full of portraits of iconic figures but he also accepts private commissions. More portraits of musicians (Cobain, Hendrix, Reed and others) here. And if you really want to shake your head in disbelief, Chapman is one of several mosaic artists who were tapped to create ‘luxury mosaic’ portraits made entirely of gemstones. Gemstone Creatives is a fusion of art, jewels and design. You can find a detailed account of the process on if it’s hip it’s here (I couldn’t figure out which portraits were Chapman’s).
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