Corks go from the bottle to canvas as works of art
Sharon Rose and Dorit Schwartz smile every time they see a bottle of wine being opened at Spiedini or Marché Bacchus restaurants. The corks from those bottles, rather than being dumped in the trash, are sent to these entrepreneurial women who will eventually turn them into unique, one-of-a-kind pieces that give the term "wine appreciation" an entirely new meaning.
Rose Schwartz Design uses all types of wine and Champagne corks for its wine art collection. Besides the two restaurants, they are also receiving corks from Clos du Pegas and Hope Wine.
The corks are used whole, sliced in halves and quarters, and trimmed into various shapes to fit a specific design. And no matter how many corks are used, each one is positioned so that the person viewing the art is also viewing names and logos from wineries around the world.
Rose said that once a design is agreed upon, she selects a substantial piece of wood for the canvas and covers it with fabric such as linen or ultra-suede. Specially formulated clear glue secures the corks to the canvas.
"I tell people to think of a paint brush and then to think of the corks as paint," Rose said. "I study each one and strategically place them to create texture, color and depth just as a painter would with paint. I'm hoping to bring a new vision to the art community. Our largest piece is called Gold, a jumper horse that used about 400 to 450 corks."
The corks are used in their natural state and are good for an extended period of time if kept in a plastic bag or open jar to prevent mildew and mold. If the cork is cracked, it can be shaved to fit the canvas and still become a piece of the final art. Rhinestones, precious jewels and feathers are often added to add highlights and a little excitement to the overall design. This then becomes a mixed-media piece.
"People enjoy studying these pieces so much and often, a specific cork will bring back a delightful story about that wine and when and where it was consumed," Rose said. "Eventually, if you're standing next to someone during this conversation, you'll get to know what kind of wine he or she enjoys. Let's face it. Corks conjure up good times and memorable moments and this is a great way to preserve them."
Rose said that while every attempt is made to fulfill a specific design request, some images cannot be adequately conveyed with the use of wine corks. Rose Schwartz Design has completed about a dozen pieces and several are currently being showcased at Marché Bacchus. Prices vary according to intricacy of design, number of corks and type of canvas.
"Right now, we're having so much fun and so are our friends," Rose said. "They save their corks for us and sometimes bring over four or five corks instead of the usual nine and apologize for not drinking as much this month as they did the month before."
For more information, visit roseschwartzdesign.com.
SAVE THE CORKCork is not an easily renewable resource. It originates from the cork oak primarily grown in countries that run along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea where there is plenty of sunshine, low rainfall and high humidity. The tree evolved to protect itself from the harsh conditions of the Mediterranean forests that experience frequent droughts, brush fires and temperature fluctuations.
Cork is actually made of water-resistant cells that separate the outer bark from the delicate interior bark. It has a unique set of properties not found in any other naturally existing material such as being lightweight, rot resistant, fire resistant, termite resistant, impermeable to gas and liquid, soft and buoyant.
These properties make it ideal for stopping wine bottles.
Algeria, Spain, Morocco, France, Italy, Tunisia and Portugal are the largest producers, with Portugal producing 50 percent of cork worldwide. Cork stoppers, more commonly known as wine corks, represent about 60 percent of all cork-based production.
