Kitchen Kitsch

Well, I finally finished the vintage mosaic toaster! A 60's era classic Toastmaster.

It's just beeauuteeful!

I'm entitling it "Kitchen Kitsch".

Maybe I should have chosen a different title

since the dictionary defines"kistch"as

pretentious bad taste.

Some may call it bad taste to choose a toaster as art,

but I think of it as campy art with bling !

I have a mosaic "toaster as art". ...

How about "toaster as musical instrument "??

Check out comedian Heywood Banks playing the toaster and perfoming "Yeah Toast!"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BILAFuSi-i0

And my friends, the innovative artists at Gallery on the Square in Danville, Indiana were "the toast of the town" when they recreated "American Gothic" on the town square street with over 4000 pieces of toast !!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQicvyI34_Q

"Kitchen Kistch " will be available at the upcoming Penrod Arts Fair at the Indianapolis Museum of Art on September 11.

"Toaster "as Art

I love to recycle old, broken vintage toasters into mosaic art. The retro profiles of the 50's and 60's are so cool. And I think this toaster might turn out to be one of my favorites.

I can't resist the puns !
I'm about "toast"!... measuring, cutting, nipping, grinding.
A toast to mosaic art!..... Sorry.

I chose working with shades of turquoise, because it's so mid century modern "kitcheny". I can still remember my mother's kitchen with light turquoise kitchen counter tops. That was THE color ! She even had a turquoise Thunderbird convertible.

I started with a find from an antique shop. I had to really clean it out. Yuchh ! crumbs and goop from 50 years ago. Then, spray paint the rusted guts silver and tape it off and paint the old faded Bakelite a new shiny black. Cut off the old nasty fabric cord... and I'm in business and ready to mosaic.

I'm starting with stainless steel beads. It makes a nice, clean and safe edge. I like to use lots of mirror- silver and colored + Van Gogh glass is so rich. I really don't have an exact plan...so I'm just setting row by row. I found some irridized Italian Smalti from an old job and some seed beads tucked away in a jar. Perfect addition.
So.. I'll keep setting.....

Check out the mosaic toast in the background. My mosaic toasters gotta have toast....so I cut out a toast shape on backer board and mosaic it with brown and tan art glass. It's waiting to be "dremel-ed " and grouted and sealed.