Made by the Coast: Clay, Mosaic and Glass 

Long before they were considered decorative arts, clay, mosaic and glass were part of everyday Mediterranean life. Clay became the vessels that carried water, wine and olive oil, but also the painted ceramics through which ancient cultures recorded mythology, ceremony and ordinary life. Greek potters were developing sophisticated terracotta forms and painted techniques centuries before the Common Era; the familiar hydria, amphora and drinking cup were practical objects that also became extraordinary works of art.

Mosaic followed a similarly long path. Early Greek makers arranged pebbles into patterns before Roman craftsmen expanded the practice through tesserae—small pieces of stone, ceramic and glass—turning floors and walls throughout the Mediterranean into elaborate fields of geometry, color and narrative.

Centuries later, mosaic became one of the defining visual languages of Byzantine art. Ravenna preserves some of its most extraordinary surviving examples, while in Venice, the Basilica di San Marco transforms mosaic into something almost architectural: vast surfaces of gold and colored glass catching the changing light until walls, domes and ceilings seem to dissolve into shimmer. It is a reminder that mosaic was never simply decoration. In the Mediterranean, it became a way of shaping space with fragments, color and light.

Glass has always carried a little mystery. The material itself is ancient, but around the Mediterranean it became something close to magic: sand and minerals transformed by extreme heat into vessels, beads, perfume bottles, windows and shimmering pieces of mosaic. Then Venice took things further. By the Middle Ages, Venetian glassmakers had become so skilled that their techniques were treated almost like state secrets. In 1291, the furnaces were moved to Murano, officially to reduce the risk of fires in Venice—but the move also helped keep the city’s valuable glassmaking knowledge concentrated in one place. Craftsmen developed increasingly sophisticated methods, and the reputation of Venetian glass spread across Europe. That sense of secrecy only added to its allure.

What fascinates us is that none of these traditions has disappeared. Earth is still being shaped by hand—and there is something quietly magical about drinking your morning coffee from a mug made by someone’s hands. Mosaic is still assembled fragment by fragment, with artists around the world turning tiny pieces of stone, ceramic, and glass into distinctive artworks and objects for the home. And centuries later, furnaces are still burning in Venice and California, the glass still glows, and the story continues in the hands of artists finding new ways to shape it. Three ancient Mediterranean crafts, still very much alive. Only the language has changed.

We wanted to explore what happens when these ancient materials pass through modern hands. For this edition of THE ATELIER PRESENTS, we chose six contemporary artists—three from each shore—working with clay, mosaic, and glass, turning earth into objects, fragments into art, and fire into glass. We were not looking for artists whose work matched. In fact, the differences are what interested us most.

Casey Starks and Marco Terranova begin with the same elemental material and arrive at two very different interpretations of clay. Kim Emerson brings mosaic into contemporary California architecture, while in Ravenna, Yukiko Nagai takes a technique inseparable from the city’s artistic history and gives it an unexpected new life. In glass, Christopher Jeffries works with the light and architecture of Laguna Beach while Massimo Micheluzzi continues a conversation with Venetian glassmaking from within Venice itself. Six artists. Three ancient materials. Two shores. And six reminders that a tradition survives not by remaining unchanged, but by giving the next pair of hands something new to make from it.

And if you cannot visit these artists and their studios in person, explore their work online. When possible, consider bringing one of their pieces home. There is something special about living with an object shaped by hand—something made slowly, individually, and with a story that reaches far beyond the room it eventually inhabits. It may be a ceramic vessel, a small mosaic, or a piece of glass that catches the afternoon light. Whatever the form, it becomes more than decoration. It is a piece of contemporary craft with an ancient lineage—and something uniquely yours to live with.