Heroine of a Thousand Pieces: The Judith Mosaics of Lilian Broca

Canadian artist Lilian Broca received an MFA degree from the Pratt Institute in New York. In a career spanning over thirty years, including thirteen teaching, painting and drawing at Kwantlen Polytechnic University in Vancouver, her work has been featured in more than sixty exhibitions in Canada, the United States, Middle East and Europe.

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Among many distinctions, Broca was the subject of a retrospective exhibition at the Frye Art Museum in Seattle in 2001 and her mosaics won the coveted Lorenzo il Magnifico Gold Medal in the mixed media category at the 2003 Florence Biennale International Exhibition. In addition, Broca’s mosaics received First Prize in the two-dimensional category at the international juried exhibitions at the Italian American Museum in San Francisco in 2004, at the High Risk Gallery in Chicago in 2006, and The Juror’s Choice award at the Women’s Museum of California, San Diego, CA in 2016.

 

In 2010 Broca was featured in "Tiffany Studios’ Techniques Inspiration for Today’s Artists" by Edith Crouch, Schiffer Publishing, Atglen, PA, USA, and in "Mosaic Fine Art Portraits" by Irit Levy and Pam Givens, Mosaic Fine Art Books, USA.

 

The book, "The Hidden and the Revealed: The Queen Esther Mosaics of Lilian Broca," Gefen Publishing House, NY, Jerusalem, by Sheila Campbell, Yosef Wosk and Lilian Broca, with an introduction by American artist Judy Chicago, was released in 2011.

 

"Return to Byzantium: The Art and Life of Lilian Broca," a one hour made for TV documentary on Broca’s art and life aired on CBC TV across Canada in July, 2013 and in Europe in 2015; selected in five international film festivals, it won Best Documentary Award in San Pedro International Film Festival, CA.

 

Celebrated for her spirited exploration of contemporary societal issues in a variety of media, Broca draws on historical iconography, biblical stories, and popular myths. Her monumental narrative mosaics reflect a worldly awareness attuned to significant concerns.

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​The 112 page Catalogue Heroine of a Thousand Pieces: The Judith Mosaics of Lilian Broca, published by Vancouver’s ll Museo at Italian Cultural Centre, with essays by Dr.Yosef Wosk,  Dr.Sheila Campbell, Dr. Adolfo Roitman, Dr. Angela Clarke and Lilian Broca, is available for purchase at the MBA.