KEEGO HARBOR- SYLVAN LAKE Bring in this coupon for a FREE Self Serve Sundae with entree. Multifaceted Shop New passions and dreams are realized for a local mosaic artist. Custom videos for your: - Website - TV Commercial ((rat4 - Email Blast - Social Media Site - Window Display - PowerPoint Preso www.10tenstudios.com (248) 481-4147 Your Complete AudioNideo Home Automation Headquarters! Sales • Service • Design • Installation (248) 681-8509 3355 Orchard Lake Road • Keego Harbor 1867310 DINE IN - TAKE-OUT DRIVE THROUGH! BOSK anfr '411111 Li —) COFFEE ..7,1 Catering ilvailable FAMILY OWNED AND OPERATED OPEN FOR BREAKFAST, LUNCH, AND DINNER Zingerman's Croissant 1.14100% Organic Sandwich Special with 12 oz. coffee ' Coffee" $5.75 2850 Orchard Lake Road • Keego Harbor MI 48320 • 248-481-6956 e = est izza an • a a • s in eego. pizzeria and restaurant Italian ■ American Cuisine ■ Full Bar On and Off Premise Catering Private Rooms from 10-100 682-6540 1999 Cass Lake Road Keego Harbor , t We Produce Films That Help Sell Your Business... Mon - Fri 11 am - 10pm Sat and Sun lam - 10:30pm Friday, November 29th - One Night Only BOB POSH Featuring John Cionca Finely 'Tuned" Comedy Dinner and Show $39.95 Call Now For Reservations 248-877-7462 Santia Banquet Center Saturday, December 7th Dinner and Show $ 42.00 Call for Reservations 248-877-7462 *>> gift guide Come 248.334.3900 - Orchard Lake & Middlebelt BEST RIBS IN TOWN FRESH FISH DAILY SPECIALS ve Lynne Konstantin I Contributing Writer Have Fun! A Great Place For All Your Holiday Shopping Needs Slivers of glass surround precious stones and sliced agate on this mosaic window. N ew beginnings can happen at any time. That's Darlene Hermann's favorite part of her story. Hermann, who now goes by Leene to suit her metamorphosis, has a brand-new career — and freedom of expression — at age 68. An insurance agent and financial planner for 35 years (who still serves her existing clients), Hermann, who lives in Farmington Hills, had never thought of herself as an artist. "The most painting I ever did was my walls, with a roller:' she says. About 15 years ago, she took a single class in crafting stained-glass windows. She completed her proj- ect, packed it away in a box in her basement and never gave it a second thought. But four years ago, by chance, she met an artist who worked in mosaics. The artist encouraged Hermann to try it, which she did. And it was transfor- mative. She went into her basement and pulled out that old box with the stained glass in it and decided to con- vert her entire basement into a studio. Hermann has since taken a class in color and composition at the Birmingham-Bloomfield Art Center in Birmingham to better understand the richness of the palettes she works with. Working steadily in her spare time for the past four years and selling pieces here and there, she had a major breakthrough about four months ago. The Jewish Community Center in Oak Park had just completed a new playground. Terri Steam, the former director of the Janice Charach Gallery at the West Bloomfield JCC, had heard about Hermann's work and called to commission a mosaic bench to place in the park. Hermann, of course, was thrilled. The bench was unveiled in August, and she has received so much positive feedback that she felt comfortable tak- ing a few more leaps. "The people I worked with at the JCC treated me like an artist, and I began to think that I really could be one:' Hermann says. "It started to feel really wonderful, that at this point in my life something could be so fresh and new:' Since then, she has participated in exhibitions through the Mosaic Artists of Michigan at the Pitmann- Puckett Art Gallery in Ferndale and opened her own shop on Etsy.com. She also has opened a space at Art Is In Market, a co-op of Michigan artists in Twelve Oaks Mall in Novi. Hermann's work, which ranges in price from $22 to $1,800, is diverse yet retains the artist's own voice. Vibrantly hued and gleaming cuts Multifaceted on page 50 JN November 7 • 2013 49