Supporting Montessorians With Big Ideas
Montessori n' Such is collaborating with Montessorians that have amazing ideas and high quality products. This week we invited Kristi to give us an insight about her company Montessori Mosaic and how this idea for beautiful interactive artwork came to life.
How Montessori Mosaic Came To Be
In 2012 I was training to become a Montessori primary guide. In order to build my reference albums for each area of the curriculum, I took thousands of photographs of materials and works in various stages of use. When it came time to complete the final assignment for my philosophy course I had the option to do something creative. The result was the first Montessori Mosaic, “The Role of the Adult,” a photographic mosaic of a pair of hands holding a small potted plant.
A photographic mosaic is an image that has been divided into equal sized sections, or tiles, each of which is replaced with another photograph of appropriate average color.
The Role of The Adult
In the “Role of the Adult” mosaic, the hands represent the adult in the Montessori classroom. The pot represents the carefully prepared classroom environment, and the plant represents the child. The image is built using those thousands of pictures I took during training. Even the concept of a photographic mosaic itself is in line with the philosophy; as teaching always begins with the whole object and then explores the parts or smaller elements that comprise the whole. If you look very closely you might even see my two children at work. I frequently asked them to help me create images I needed to fulfill my assignments.
I proudly presented my creation for my assignment and thought that would be the end of the story. However, it was such a hit that my classmates asked me to create two more to gift to our instructors as a tokens of appreciation. Word spread quickly and I soon received more requests along with encouragement to offer them for sale to the larger community. And so, Montessori Mosaic was born.
How The Collection Grew
The “Peace Dove” mosaic was the second image to be created. It too is composed of images from the Montessori Primary classroom and includes the statement: Montessori is Peace Education. Today, it remains one of the most popular in the collection.
Next came “Follow the Child.” It is an image of a small child off to find his next adventure paired with one of the greatest mantras of the philosophy. It is meant to remind us that as Montessorians we strive to follow the lead of the children in our charge, as they know better than anyone what it is they need at any given moment in their educational journey.
The “World Map” mosaic, inspired by the classic world map puzzle that graces the geography area in the Montessori classroom, was created next. It is the first to carry a direct quotation of Dr. Maria Montessori herself which reads, “The child is both a hope and a promise for mankind.”
Montessori Mosaic Today
Today, Montessori Mosaics adorn the walls of classrooms, lobbies, offices and home school environments in countries around the world. Seven different designs are currently offered. Three of them, “Peace Dove” “Follow the Child” and “World Map” are currently available on Montessori N' Such.
Montessori Mosaics are printed on high-quality paper and designed to fit into standard-sized poster frames (20”x 30" or 16”x 20") that are widely available at craft and office supply stores and other retailers. It is my sincere hope that Montessori Mosaics bring as much joy to others as they have to me.
~ Kristi owner and creator of Montessori Mosaics
FREE PRINTABLE - Big and Small Fruit Matching
