Alison Hepburn

I studied fine-art painting at St Albans and Exeter Colleges of Art and then worked as an illustrator for 10 years, working on commissions for books, national magazines, newspapers, and greeting cards before starting a career in mosaic.

I now make mosaics for private commissions and exhibitions in the UK and Europe and I am a member of the British Association for Modern Mosaic. In recent years I have taken part in exhibitions in London, Cardiff, Stratford, Stroud, York, Wolverhampton and the Chartres Biennial International Mosaic Exhibition. Future exhibitions already planned include  the installation of my Chimneys sculpture at the Newby Hall sculpture Park in Yorkshire for the 2008 season.

My first book, Beginner's Guide to Mosaics, was published in 2005 and my second book, Mosaics for your Home and Garden was published in 2007.

Throughout history mosaics have endured as an art form because of a human fascination with the ordering of materials and ideas into a permanent form. Mosaic combines materials of inherent beauty, with the playing of light on the surface, and the creativity of the artist. This results in a work of art which can be meticulously planned or spontaneous, extravagant or restrained.