Commissioned Artworks – Rachael Que Vargas Atelier

Mosaic Sign for Alden State Bank

Mosaic Sign For Alden State Bank, 2005Vitreous glass on Durock

La Siren III, a Commission for the American Museum of Natural History

La Siren III, 2017Vitreous glass, bottle caps, stone, copper, 15.65

A Magen David Mosaic for Congregation Kadima

Magen David mosaic for The New Reform Congregation Kadima, 2018Sicis

Fudo Myoo Light Fixture, 2015

A sculptural steel steel light fixture in the visage of Fudu Myoo the Wisdom King.

Acrobat Fence for Discovery Playhouse, 2011

Discovery Playhouse commissioned this fence for their Children’s Museum in Cape Girardeau, MO. The faces in the fence are glass mosaic, which were complete as a project with a local arts group.

These three panels are each 50 x 50 inches and are installed on the wall of a roof-top garden in Pompano Beach, FL. The client had seen several of my other scrap fence designs and wanted something similar for her space. This was the first commissioned project I did in the Hudson, NY studio.

Custom Security Grates with Kinetic Sculpture Design

These two grates are a commission for an apartment building

Mosaic Commission for LimeLight Lodge, Aspen Colorado

Mosaic Fish For Limelight Lodge Swimming Pool, 2008
Sicis glass, glass eyes, glass tile
Dimensions variable
Commission

Rainbow Trout Glass Mosaic, 2002

Rainbow Trout, 2002glass tile, glass eye, copper, Wonderboard substrate on

Four Marble Mosaics Commissioned by Northeastern University, Boston

One of four mosaics commissioned by Eson Chan, Art Director at Northeastern University Magazine,to illustrate an article about dolphin watching off the coast of Spain.

Community Harmony Through Song & Play, Panel 1: Music

Community Harmony Through Song & Play, Panel 1: Music, 2001Ceramic

Community Harmony Through Song & Play, Panel 2: Arts and History

Community Harmony Through Song & Play, Panel 2: Arts and

Community Harmony Through Song & Play, Panel 3: Peace in the Park

Community Harmony Through Song & Play Panel 3 In the park a band plays, a man and woman dance, a child jumps to catch the notes in the air…. A man sells balloons and children get sno-cones from a pushcart vendor, a common sight in North Lawndale…. Community Harmony Through Song & Play: panel 3, 2001: ceramic tile on wood substrate 66″ x 48″ x 2″ One of three mosaics created for Manly Career Academy High School in Chicago’s North Lawndale neighborhood. Assisted by Caswell James and advised by veteran muralist Nina Smoot-Cain, I worked with a team of nine community youths to design and produce three mosaic panels totaling 66 sqare feet. Commission sponsored by Chicago Public Art Group with support from Gallery 37 and the Mayor’s Office of Workforce Development.

Green River Station Glass Mosaic Panel

My neighbor across the street lives in what was once the old train station, sometime around the turn of the century. He commissioned this piece for the exterior of his home. This was actually the most difficult mosaic I’ve done to date.

Erzuli VeVe Mosaic Table

Vévé for Erzuli Mosaic Table, 2003vitreous glass, glass gems, steel

El Corazon Mosaic Table

This table was commissioned by Angelo at Casa Loca in Chicago. The original design is from the Mexican Loteria deck, a traditional game similar to Bingo.

DisneyQuest Chicago: Mosaic Mural and Sculpture for Cows On Parade

DisneyQuest Chicago: Mosaic Mural and Sculpture, 2005
Plastic rhinestone mosaic
Commission

Wind Vane Commissioned by Cycling Salamander Gallery

Cycling Salamander Windvane, a kinetic sculpture windvane commissioned in 2004

Frog Fountain Wire Sculpture

The better part of two 1/4 mile spools of wire went into making this fountain.

Legba Gate and Devil Gate

The gates shown here are largely created from various recycled elements. They were part of a larger project in Chicago, IL by Kenneth Morrison on which I collaborated.

Modern Security Grates in Steel + Copper

E. Jones wanted burglar bars for her ground floor windows, but she didn’t want to feel like she was in prison when she looked through them.

Frank Lloyd Wright Styled Fence in Steel, Slate, Copper + Glass

The floral pattern in these fences was designed to complement clerestory windows overlooking the courtyard where they are installed. Incorporating natural slate, iridescent glass mosaic tile and copper, this project is the culmination of techniques I have been developing over the past few years.

City Gates, 4022 N. Sheridan Road Chicago

City Gates, commissioned by Bob Racky for his offices at 4022 N. Sheridan Road, Chicago, features two pairs of gates based on maps of the Chicago area. The south gates show Riverside, IL and feature urban planning by Frederic Law Olmstead in the lower left corner. It’s not on every project that an ironworker gets to “quote” the designer of Central Park!

A Love Story: Narrative Fence in Steel, Glass, Copper and Brass

Having seen pictures of my Acrobat Fence, my friends Howie and JoAnn approached me to design four sections of fence to enclose a round garden at their Evanston, Illinois residence. Together, they scripted a narrative telling the story of their lives together in four acts: meeting and falling in love; traveling Asia; their first child, Gabriel; and their second child, Julian.

Scrap Iron Fence 2208 S. Halsted Chicago, IL

A collaboration with Kenneth Morrison. He originated the concept and sketched a rough layout for overall project. I designed and fabricated indivdual panels. The choice of which panels went together was his. It was a little like an enormous steel version of the exquisite corpse game played by the Surrealists…in which players take turns adding to a drawing without seeing the parts drawn by the last player.

Scrap Iron Fence Part Two, Chicago, IL 2003

The most interesting part of this half of the fence design (installed on Cermak, around the corner from part one) is that several of the elements are kinetic and can be moved or repositioned.

Steel + Mosaic Fence with Tumbling Acrobats

These graceful figures suggest both the motion of their dance and the music that moves them. The obvious joy of the figures is engaging— but their simplicity is what really captivates us. We can easily see ourselves, someone we know, or the person we might like to be in this dance.