Mosaic artist leads class in Spray

By Joni Kabana and Stephen Allen

Artist Mary Tapogna led the first in a series of classes at the Spray General Store last week.

The Spray General Store underwent a significant restoration project, supported by the Oregon Frontier Chamber of Commerce and funded by Oregon Main Street and Oregon Heritage.

Today, the General Store serves as a community gathering space, event space, and now a classroom space.

This year, the Spray General Store received the competitive Creative Heights grant from the Oregon Community Foundation. The General Store is bringing some talented people to town.

Mary Tapogna was born and raised in Springfield, Ohio. She was the 8th of 9 siblings. Mary attended art school at The University of Cincinnati (graphic design), and graduated with a BFA in Photography from the Art Academy of Cincinnati.

Upon moving to Portland, Oregon, in 1990, Tapogna worked as a freelance photographer, mainly for The Oregonian Newspaper. Coming directly from art school, working as a photojournalist was educational and enlightening, she says.

Mary gradually began to dabble with the mosaic art medium. I was soon having exhibits, and undertaking large and small scale commission projects. This led to the opening of the brick and mortar, Hail Mary. A storefront/gallery/studio, Hail Mary was an arts and community fixture in Portland for 12 years.

"Community and my personal projects were born and executed there. Locals and travelers, from far and wide, deemed it a very special destination," she said.

Topagna's mosaic work covers a range of sometimes religious and secular portraits, crosses, rosaries, tables, lamps, etc. The portraits are fabricated using various accumulated materials, images, and layering. Working mostly from my photographic images and drawings, the portraits are made from found and recycled materials gathered from my everyday surroundings.

The work can take weeks to months to complete, depending upon size and challenge of the project. Traditional mosaics that utilize many tiny pieces of glass and tile are inspirational to me. I honor the traditional art form by striving for the same tedious intricacy, while incorporating contemporary unorthodox materials, and subject matter.

In 2014, Tapogna did a month long artist residency at Catamount Arts in St. Johnsbury, Vermont. This included teaching, and creating public art that resides on the front grounds of the Art Center. "This residency began my intrigue and love for Vermont, so much so, that I moved to Vermont in 2022," Mary says. "I live in Lyndonville and my studio is accessible by appointment."

Q&A with Mary Tapogna, Mosaic Artist

Q: Tell us about your style of art and why you like to make it.

A: Mixed media mosaic art. I use traditional and very unorthodox materials.

Q: Describe your progression into your art. Are you a full-time artist or do you hold another job? If so, what is that job?

A: I have always been excited by art. I am a full time working artist.

Q: What would you like viewers to come away with when they see your creations?

A: I appreciate when people tell me that they have been inspired by my work. I pay a lot of homage in my subject matter when doing portraits, so I hope the respect, and how I go about my unique style comes across.

Q: Describe how you learned your skills.

A: I went to a fine art college in Cincinnati, but am a self taught mosaic artist.

Q: What would you say to someone starting out with your craft?

A: Just continue to work. Mosaic is a tedious process but with a lot of payoff. It requires patience. Be patient. Give yourself room to work, so that you can come back to what you're working on without disruption.

Q: If you had to define what art is, what would that be to you?

A: Art is to me expression of thoughts, ideas, emotion. It's therapy, and work. I appreciate and feel inspired by art that shows layers of tedium and details. Art should evoke a response, good or bad.

Q: Describe how you feel when you are creating a mosaic.

A: I go thru a lot of feelings when working. Excitement and self doubt simultaneously, sometimes. I love when an idea comes to me randomly, and I figure out how to process the idea into reality. Swimming is my form of meditation, and ideas come to me at times while swimming.

Q: What other interests do you have besides mosaics?

A: My animals, swimming, walking, music, friendships.

Q: Name an artist(s) who inspires you.

A: Diane Arbus, Brian Borrello, Yayoi Kusama, Andy Warhol

Q: What impressions do you have of Eastern Oregon? Have they changed over time as you have visited the region?

A: I have never been to this area of eastern Oregon. That seems crazy since I lived in Portland for 32 years! One of my better commercial clients is Fire on The Mountain, and I'm excited to see their new place in Bend that they just opened. It houses many of my mosaic lamps that I made in and shipped from Vermont. Upon moving and driving across the country when I left Portland in 2022, the scenery in Eastern Oregon was my favorite part of the trip. It was beautiful. I am so excited to be coming back!