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Thursday, November 2, 2000
Orange County Edition
Section: Calendar
Page: F-7
Glory in Glass
by PAUL'S DUGINSKI
/ Los Angeles Times
The new mosaic at St. Paul's Greek Orthodox Church in Irvine depicts
the Last Judgment, in which Jesus, surrounded by angels,
separates the righteous from the damned. The Last Judgment is a
central concept in the Orthodox faith.
Installed within the 36-foot-diameter dome, 60 feet above the floor,
the mosaic, installed in time for the "Music for the End of
Time"
concerts this weekend, shows Jesus and below him, the 12 apostles, the
four Evangelists (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) and Old
Testament prophets.
The mosaic was designed by Italian artist Sirio Tonelli, (right)
who has
created Byzantine mosaics for more than 100 churches and
cathedrals in the United States, including St. Nicholas' Greek
Orthodox Church in Northridge and the Greek Orthodox Cathedral of
the Holy Trinity in New York City.
The Irvine project took about 2 1/2 years to complete, from initial
designs to finished installation. Tonelli estimates he used several
million pieces of specially forged Italian colored glass to create the
mosaic, which covers about 2,700 square feet. Many of the glass
tiles are then hand-painted with gold leaf. One square yard weighs
nearly 6 1/2 pounds.
Tonelli also designed the 1,200-square-foot mosaic of Mary and a young
Jesus above the altar and the external mosaic of St. Paul,
the church's patron saint. The mosaic was designed to meet earthquake
standards.
(Click to view larger
images)
 
In Italy
1. The project began 2 1/2 years ago. After Tonelli spent 6 months
designing and preparing the mosaic in his studio, Father Steven
Tsichlis of St. Paul's church went to Florence in August. There he and
the artist agreed on the final design.
2. The mosaic, which was assembled in reverse on adhesive paper using
millions of pieces of forged glass, was cut into numbered
sections of varying size and shipped in 10 crates to the port of San
Pedro.
In Irvine
3. Italian artisans from Tonelli's workshop begin in the apex of the
dome, applying adhesive and bonding numbered sections of the mosaic to
the interior dome surface. The sections are placed with the adhesive
paper side facing out.
4. After each section is tapped and adjusted into place, it is allowed
to dry.
5. In a couple of days, the adhesive paper is peeled off and the
mosaic is rinsed with muriatic acid.
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