In the early history of mosaic production, artists would design and slaves would implement. That mentality survives today. Mosaic is often thought of as a craft and not an art, in which “craftspeople” are “coloring by numbers” to compose mosaic from the original image of an artist. When these two historically separate functions become more fully integrated, a mosaic composition can reach true artistic excellence.
Great artists master the subtle differences and unique characteristics of common media such as oil, acrylic and charcoal. Similarly, in order to make the most of the mosaic medium and create great mosaic art, the artist needs to understand and work with its unique characteristics – physicality, material properties, surface textures, reflectivity, interstices, andamento, tessera, grout, co-planarity, scale, and more.
Artaic gives artists the tools to master the mosaic medium. Software allows for visualization and virtual manipulation prior to fabrication, experimenting with a wide range of characteristics, and then mechanization reduces labor barriers. Artaic makes mosaic more accessible to artists as a medium to work with, and thereby makes highly artistic mosaic design available to everyone.