the Tristan Convex Mirror

In All, Mirrors by Mark Evans

 

Tristan Convex Mirror

The Tristan convex mirror was a labor of love.  My love of the sunburst form combined with spikes of natural quartz crystal and layers of handmade Venetian glass has made this mirror one of the most beautiful I’ve made.  And one of the heaviest…..

This mirror is about 14 inches in diameter and is currently in my studio pending being sent to one of my showrooms.

Jewelry for walls.

Tristan Side 1

Tristan Side 2

Tristan Detail

The Tristan convex mirror is named for the character Tristan in the Celtic legend of Tristan and Isolde.  Tristan was a Cornish knight who was accompanying Isolde, an Irish princess, to her marriage.  After a rocky start to their relationship they were transformed by ruse and a magic potion to being intensely in love.  Their love became one of obsession, delirium and, ultimately, death.

The legend was originally written as an epic poem by Thomas of Brittany and influenced Le Roman de Tristan by Béroul around 1150.  Many countries have interpreted the Tristan and Isolde story through their own cultural lens.

Given the ingredients of the story it became a famous, and looooong opera by Richard Wagner.  It is through this opera that the legend is still with us today.

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Tristan and Isolde by John William Waterhouse 1916

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David Hockney’s set for Act I of Tristan & Isolde for the LA Opera.