Monika Libor

Monika Libor

Southern California

4 Elements abstract view / Earth wind and fire and blood sweat and tears

At the time this collaboration came up, I did some research on the subject of the four elements and found quite a few explanations going back to the ancient Greeks, to alchemy, astrology, astronomy, and every kind of religion from Wicca to Kabala.

My inspiration ……………..

Earth:  keeps us grounded, 

Symbolizes density, nurtures and gives us stability

Colors: Yellow, amber and greens

Air: Inspiration,

Symbolizes sky and clouds, lightness and movement

Colors: white and all shades of blue

Fire: Power and passion-

Symbolizes the get up and go and is associated with heat and summer and inviting in winter

Colors: Red, Orange and yellow

Water: feeling and creativity

Symbolizes the cycle of the moon; water follows its own path, is the source of life

Colors: ocean and moon colors = deep blue, sea green to silvery foam

Everything that is whole contains all four elements and not to forget the fifth element: LOVE and passion for everything we do.

Materials used and How to for this tile:

            Since it was my second time to work deep, I followed the Bullseye instruction

[8073 - Tip Sheet 3: Working Deep (revised 2003) Thank you to Bullseye; even though I used Sys 96 glass and changed the firing schedule accordingly.]

Dams: 1” Skamol board, heavy kiln posts and fire brick, 1/32 Fiber paper

Glass:  1^st layer: clear iridized glass, irid side down

2^nd layer: single thickness crystal clear

3^rd layer: elements layer: transparent yellow and amber, for earth and red, orange,     purple for fire/heat

4^th layer: double thickness crystal clear

5^th layer: second elements layer: transparent blues from light to dark, for air and wind and Sea green and aqua blue for water

6^th layer: 1 sheet single thickness and 2 sheets of double thickness.

I used 50˚ from 1050˚ to 1250˚ for a bubble squeeze and hoped that some bubbles will rise to almost the surface (air and water).  All in all the firing and cool down took a bit over 50 hours. And the piece ended up to be ¾ of an inch thick. (My first tile ended up to be 1 ½ inches it took 82 hours from start to heat up to cool down to room temperature).

Pinwheel / The circle of life – art deco interpretation

This tile came about after I looked out the kitchen window into my backyard and gale force winds where blowing the orange blossoms all over my deck. Contemplating about the circle of life, I realized that we all, humans and flora and fauna, need all 4 elements to live and survive. We all need the earth for food, the air to breathe and the fire for warmth, and the wind to keep the circle of life flowing like a pinwheel.

Materials used and how to:

Dams: 1” Skamol board, heavy kiln posts and fire brick, 1/32 Fiber paper

Glass:  1^st layer: clear iridized glass, irid side down on thin fiber paper

            2^nd layer: single thickness clear

            3^rd layer: clear fractures and streamers pink and green

            4^th layer: opal lavender, light blue, [yellow, white, red and light green dots=elements]

            4^th layer – middle part: 2 dichro spirals to symbolize the circle of life.