Gary Drostle (born 1961) is a British artist specialising in

public art Public art is art in any Media (arts), media whose form, function and meaning are created for the general public through a public process. It is a specific art genre with its own professional and critical discourse. Public art is visually and phy ...

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

and

mosaic A mosaic () is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/Mortar (masonry), mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and ...

as well as

mural painting A mural is any piece of graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' is a Spani ...

and

drawing Drawing is a Visual arts, visual art that uses an instrument to mark paper or another two-dimensional surface, or a digital representation of such. Traditionally, the instruments used to make a drawing include pencils, crayons, and ink pens, some ...

. He was also President of the British Association for Modern Mosaic, a lecturer at The Chicago Mosaic School. and is on the editorial board o
Andamento
the Journal of Contemporary Mosaics.

Early years and education

Born in

Woolwich Woolwich () is a town in South London, southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was mainta ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, the son of Docker and Trade Union activist Frederick Drostle. He studied art at the St Martin's School of Art (1979) and

Hornsey College of Art Hornsey College of Art, also known as HCA, founded in 1880 as the Hornsey School of Arts, was an art school in Crouch End, part of Hornsey, Middlesex, England. From 1965 it was in the London Borough of Haringey. From 1955 to 1973, when it was me ...

(1980–1983) (now

Middlesex University Middlesex University London (legally Middlesex University and abbreviated to MDX) is a public research university based in Hendon, northwest London, England. The university also has campuses in Dubai and Mauritius. The name of the university is ...

) where he undertook a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

(Fine Art). His graduate work was selected for the

Christie's Christie's is a British auction house founded in 1766 by James Christie (auctioneer), James Christie. Its main premises are on King Street, St James's in London, and it has additional salerooms in New York, Paris, Hong Kong, Milan, Geneva, Shan ...

'Pick of the New Graduate Art' exhibition in 1984.

Public Art career

Haringey Hospitals Mural Project After leaving art college in 1984 he worked on a Government employment program creating murals for Haringey Hospitals. Haringey Mural Workshop In 1987 he founded 'Haringey Mural Workshop' with four other members of the Hospital Arts Program: Ruth Priestly; Hilary Leobner; Joanne White and Paul Beaumont. They designed and painted their first major public commission 'History of the Peoples Palace' mural series for

Alexandra Palace Alexandra Palace is an entertainment and sports venue in North London, situated between Wood Green and Muswell Hill in the London Borough of Haringey. A listed building, Grade II listed building, it is built on the site of Tottenham Wood and th ...

in London in 1987. Wallscpaes When the Haringey Mural Workshop disbanded in 1989 Gary set up the Arts Group 'Wallscapes' initially with

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

artist Ruth Priestly, together receiving their first public mosaic commission in 1990 from

London Borough of Islington The London Borough of Islington ( ) is a London borough, borough in North London, England. Forming part of Inner London, Islington has an estimated population of 215,667. It was formed in 1965, under the London Government Act 1963, by the amalg ...

. In 1990 Ruth returned to Belfast and Gary was joined by fellow St Martins colleague, artist Rob Turner. He worked with Rob Turner from 1990 to 2001 completing many major public art commissions across the UK including works for

Sutton Sutton (''south settlement'' or ''south town'' in Old English) may refer to: Places United Kingdom England In alphabetical order by county: * Sutton, Bedfordshire * Sutton, Berkshire, a List of United Kingdom locations: Stu-Sz#Su, location * S ...

in Surrey,

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city, non-metropolitan district and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West England, South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean ...

city centre and

Chingford Chingford is a suburban town in east London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. The centre of Chingford is north-east of Charing Cross, with Waltham Abbey to the north, Woodford Green and Buckhurst Hill to the east, Walt ...

Library for

Waltham Forest The London Borough of Waltham Forest () is an outer London borough formed in 1965 from the merger of the municipal boroughs of Leyton, Walthamstow and Chingford. The borough's administrative headquarters are at Waltham Forest Town Hall, wh ...

Council. Drostle Public Arts In 2001 the Wallscapes partnership was dissolved and Gary set up a new studio in

Greenwich Greenwich ( , , ) is an List of areas of London, area in south-east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London, east-south-east of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime hi ...

to creating public art and mosaics. Since 2001 he has continued designing and making large scale public artworks, murals and mosaics across the UK and in the USA. He now works from a studio at The Lakeside Centre, a Bow Arts Trust and

Peabody Trust The Peabody Trust was founded in 1862 as the Peabody Donation Fund and now brands itself simply as Peabody.

partnership Arts Centre in

Thamesmead Thamesmead () is an area of south-east London, England, straddling the border between the Royal Borough of Greenwich and the London Borough of Bexley. It is located east of Charing Cross, north-east of Woolwich and west of Erith. It mainly c ...

, south-east London In 2006 he received a Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust award to further study mosaic making at the famous Orsoni Mosaic Works in

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

. In 2015 he undertook the major restoration and replacement works of the

Eduardo Paolozzi Sir Eduardo Luigi Paolozzi (, ; 7 March 1924 – 22 April 2005) was a Scottish artist, known for his sculpture and graphic works. He is widely considered to be one of the pioneers of pop art. Early years Eduardo Luigi Paolozzi was born on 7 M ...

Mosaics on the Central Line platforms at Tottenham Court Road tube station.

Notable works

* (1987) The History of the Peoples Palace – Series of eleven Keim Murals painted in the West Corridor,

Muswell Hill Muswell Hill is a suburban district of the London Borough of Haringey, north London. The hill, which reaches over above sea level, is situated north of Charing Cross. Neighbouring areas include Highgate, London, Highgate, Hampstead Garden ...

, London, UK. * (1989) Love Over Gold Mural - Keim wall mural on the side of Outset UK disability training centre (now Cockpit Arts

Deptford Deptford is an area on the south bank of the River Thames in southeast London, in the Royal Borough of Greenwich and London Borough of Lewisham. It is named after a Ford (crossing), ford of the River Ravensbourne. From the mid 16th century ...

). * (1994) Sutton Heritage Mosaic - Porcelain Mosaic in Sutton Town Square, commissioned by London Borough of Sutton, UK. * (1998)

Trade Trail Mosaics - A series of eleven floor mosaics for Northgate and Southgate in Gloucester, UK. * (2000) One Town That Changed The World - Gable end mural depicting the Industrial Heritage of

Dartford Dartford is the principal town in the Borough of Dartford, Kent, England. It is located south-east of Central London and is situated adjacent to the London Borough of Bexley to its west. To its north, across the Thames Estuary, is Thurrock in ...

in Kent, UK. * (2006) The De Luci Fish Roundabout - 7.5-metre high glass mosaic clad sculpture of three entwined fish created for Bronze Age Way in

Erith Erith () is an area in south-east London, England, east of Charing Cross. Before the creation of Greater London in 1965, it was in the historical county of Kent. Since 1965 it has formed part of the London Borough of Bexley. It lies north ...

, London, UK. * (2010) The River of Life Mosaic - Large ceramic floor mosaic created for the entrance lobby of the CRWC building

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...

Iowa City Iowa City is the largest city in Johnson County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. At the time of the 2020 census the population was 74,828, making it the state's fifth-most populous city. The Iowa City metropolitan area, which enc ...

, IA. * (2015) A Walk Along The California Seashore - Series of ten mosaic panels set in bespoke terrazzo floor for the Lucile Packard Children's Hospital, Stanford, Palo Alto, CA

Awards

*(2006) The Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Award for craft excellence and development, Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust *(2007) The Rouse Kent Award for Public Art, Awards for Public art in Kent: The Erith De Luci Fish Sculpture *(2008) Mosaic Arts International, Miami 2008, Best Architectural Mosaic, Miami, FL. *(2011) TileLetter Awards – Commercial Mosaic Installation Award, The National Tile Contractors Association (of America) *(2013) Mosaic Arts International, Tacoma, Best in Show Award, The Museum of Glass, Tacoma, WA, USA. *(2014) Mosaic Arts International, Houston, Contemporary Innovation Award, The Williams Tower Gallery, Houston, TX, USA *(2014) Prix Picassiette – Award Prize, Recontres Internationales de Mosaîque, Chartres, France *(2019) 5th Annual FCI Awards, Winner in the Commercial Tile and Stone installation category.

Publications

* 'A Celebration of British Craftsmanship' - by Karen Bennett, Impress Publishing 2018 *'Andamento', vol 13 2019 - Journal of Contemporary Mosaic published by the British Association for Modern Mosaic - - 'Away from the Gallery - Gary Drostle, large scale mosaics' by Helen Miles. * 'Groutline' Fall 2018, vol.19 No.4, Journal of the Society of American Mosaic Artists, 'Creating California in a London Studio' article by Shawn Newton. * 'Mosaïque Magazine', July 2016 vol 12 - 'The large-scale mosaics of Gary Drostle' by Renée Malaval. * 'Masters of Mosaic' by Oliver Budd, 2014 The Crowood Press Ltd . * 'Mosaic Art Today' by Jeffrey B. Snyder, Schiffer Press 2012,

References

External links

Gary Drostle - Drostle Public Arts
{{DEFAULTSORT:Drostle, Gary 1961 births Living people 20th-century English male artists 21st-century English male artists Alumni of Middlesex University Alumni of Saint Martin's School of Art Artists from the Royal Borough of Greenwich English mosaic artists People from Woolwich