Mosaic artwork products displayed at the creative center of Victory Glass Building Material Co in Foshan. The company plans to introduce its high-end mosaic art brand JNJ globally next year. [Provided to China Daily]

Mosaic makers look to develop design edge to stay ahead in global markets

Much like the ceramic tile industry, mosaic makers in Foshan are also at the cross roads of change.

Mosaic is a decorative technique which seeks to create beautiful art images from an assemblage of small pieces of colored glasses, a technique that was popularized by the ancient Greeks.

Every mosaic work is like a masterpiece and involves painstaking effort like research, design, colors and style. Though lesser-known mosaic was and is still used as flooring in many countries, it is the high-end mosaic artworks that are fast becoming the cynosure of the affluent class across the world.

However, only a handful of mosaic makers in Foshan have been able to move up the value chain in what is still regarded as a niche industry, while most of the others are still struggling.

Victory Glass Building Material Co is one of the rare exceptions of a mosaic maker that has done remarkably well in the past three years. Not only has the company doubled its growth targets during the period, but now looks set to make inroads in the highly competitive European mosaic market.

Giving shape to the company's European plans are the original mosaic artwork products being developed at the company's creative center in Foshan's Creative Industry Park.

Visitors to the center are often amazed by the mosaic rendering of a dragon on the walls, much akin to a watercolor painting. There are several other objects that could catch anyone's fancy, like the chic ball grown dazzling with glittering mosaic cubes.

Set up in 1992, Victory Glass was a mosaic original equipment manufacturer (OEM) for exterior wall decoration and used to make small mosaic cubic pieces for use in swimming pools and bathrooms.

In 1999, however, things changed when Wen Qi joined the company as design director. Subsequently the company decided to focus on high-end products. Since then it has not only made several high-end products, but also decided to venture into independent design. Developed under Wen's stewardship, the company plans to introduce its high-end mosaic art brand JNJ globally next year.

"Most people in China consider mosaic a low-end building material. But from an aesthetic perspective, the creative assemblage of the colorful small pieces can make mosaic true art," Wen says.