Piece by Piece Creates Butterflies and Flora Mosaics for Sandy Segal Youth Health Center

The Piece by Piece artist team recently completed a series of California Native mosaic butterflies for the Dr. Carpenter Memorial Garden, in honor of the late Dr. Sarah Carpenter, who was an inspiration as both a leader and a physician at the Sandy Segal Youth Health Center.  

Each butterfly was created with repurposed materials, including broken ceramics, recycled glass and tile. The Monarch butterfly is the largest on the wall, stretching to 4 feet in length. Working on these delicate creatures brought much joy and light to the studio. “The butterflies became a feature of the studio,” says artistic and program director Dawn Mendelson. “Everyone wanted to stop in daily and see the progress.”

Photos from left to right: Lead Artist Luz Mack with intern Denise working on Monarch mosaic, artist team members James and Hilda, and artist team members Kim and June. 

Along with the butterflies, the team of artists created a series of lush vine-y mosaics around each of the three windows, also using a variety of materials and pulling beautiful flowers from both vintage and modern ceramics. The artists also included special glass elements, which had been donated to Piece by Piece from local glass artists who have leftover bits of fused glass.

Photos from left to right: Artist team asst. instructor Jose with Hilda Angelica and Victor Photo by Jose, window detail, and Jose working on Swallowtail butterfly.

Lastly, a sign identifying the space was also created and installed just above the garden. All of us at Piece by Piece were honored to be a part of creating this special place for young people in the community using the health clinic.