The ART of Mosaic or Musive work, it’s original from made with small tesserae enamel, glass or stones of various colours, put together with plaster.

It was began by the Ancient Egyptians, developed then in Rome from the Ist century a.c. and enjoyed great splendor in the time of the Italian Renaissance.

In that period Florence had its own school of Mosaic Art, recognized and fostered by the Medici, who had a great affection for this art.

The city of Leonardo and Michelangelo complety renewed this Art: now no longer a composition of small tesserae of various types and colours used, to represent forms and figures, but an assemblage of natural semi-precious stone from elements shoped according to a precise design: on the basis of colours and veins imprinted by nature itself, giving rise to an even pictorial composition.

The Florentine Mosaic or Painting of Stone was born in Florence.

The splendid and fascinating results can be seen today in the most important Art museum of the world, along with in parentheses The Opificio delle Pietre Dure in Florence.

This difficult and demanding art, characteristic of Medici Florence, then underwent a long period of abandonment due in part to the fact that very few artists had the courage and constancy, along with the necessary artistic talent, to continue it.

Among these few artists there is for sure Mauro Tacconi, son of distinguished Florentine Mosaic Master, Marco Tacconi.

Mauro was born in Grassina, a small village on the outskirts of Florence, always passionate about design and painting, he has his first cucouter with mosaic in his early childhood.

He spent long time in the father Bottega (studio), where working there his older brother Marzio and his uncle Enzo. Passionate about this complex and fascinating Art, in 1982 he decides finally to dedicate his life’s work to the antique craft of Florentine Mosaic in that studio, where he still work and preserve the image.

For a long period he learned and experimented the various techniques for complete a work, each one of extreme difficulty. Thanks to a rigorous training and the influence of a great master how his father.

Today he creates and realizes magnificent works made all by hand.

Many works executes from him have been exposed in national and international prestigious gallery and famous museums, meeting a large success.

The material, which is worked, is solely and always the stones, precious and semi precious, hard and soft,

using instruments which are still somewhat rudimentary, but irreplaceable by technology with regards to their sensibility and their perfect smoothing ability.

From the design on paper of the size the work will take particles are then cut out, breaking down the smallest elements so as to find in turn the must suitable colours and shade in that sample of rock.

As soon as the models are posted on to the respective stones, the cutting begins: as wooden bow, a simple iron wire and some emery, these comprise the perfect instrument for effecting the best cut.

Once the pieces are cut, the job of assembling the materials begins with the inlaying between one piece and another until a perfect mosaic, part of the work that differentiates the value of a mosaic and the other.

After the various phases there then follows the polishing.

With this procedure it is possible to produce works of a certain value and variety: pictures, table top, personalised commition works and jewels..

Recognizing the fact that here it’s not simply handcraft, which is involved, one begins to appreciate the wonder of this type of Art; an Art, which strangely enough, runs the risk of disappearing.