Mosaic Classes – Summerhouse Art

Saying good-bye to Mosaic Classes

Posted on December 21, 2023December 21, 2023 by Helen

I’ve decided, this year, to say good-bye to giving Mosaic classes. It’s been a hard decision, and I must admit I dithered over it for a while. First, it was because of the Pandemic, since my classes were in a very small home studio. But, then, I also started to realize that, although I’ve thoroughly enjoyed teaching mosaics to so many students since 2002, I was moving on myself, to other art forms, that I wanted to explore like collage and also painting, that I really wanted to get back to. And to that end, I’ve been having a great time exploring collage, gel printing and have also accumulated an impressive hoard of canvases. You would be amazed at the number of new canvases, still wrapped, you can find at Thrift stores! I haven’t given up making mosaics, though, and still have a stash of dishes for future projects. My poor little studio is heaving with all the types of art I like to engage in.

I do still get lots of inquiries about classes and I wish I could direct those people to an alternative instructor, but I really don’t know any other instructors personally. Although, if you are interested in learning to make Pique Assiette Mosaics, that shouldn’t stop you from searching for and finding another instructor. Or even teaching yourself, from the many how to videos online or as we did, from researching books on the subject in the library. Although Will and I had an education in art, we basically taught ourselves Mosaic. As I always like to say to my students, over the last 20 years, it’s pretty easy to do, a low tech art form and it really fits in with the idea of Slow Art. I’ve left a gallery of just a little sampling of the many students, over the years, on the Mosaic Class page.

Will and I are planning some changes to this website starting right after Christmas. More and better galleries of all of our art work, will be a first priority. So lots to look forward to. And now to finish getting ready for the Holidays…

I’ll end this post with a little visual of a couple of my past students. It’s been a lot of fun and I’ve enjoyed every minute!

Student Irina, cleaning grout, summerhouseart.com — Student Irina cleaning grout for a lovely finished mirror

New Mosaic Class hours now available!

Posted on October 18, 2018April 21, 2019 by Helen

Student Jude, with her lovely mosaic mirror, summerhouseart.com

Usually, when I offer my Fall/Winter classes, I’ve had to limit my available hours to weekday mornings. I’m happy to announce that due to some changes I’m able to offer more choices. So you can now book a weekly class either in the morning from 10am-12:30, or an afternoon from 1:30-4pm or an evening class from 6:30-9pm. Just call or email to see if the time and week day you’d like is available, and we’ll go from there.

The class would be 2.5 hours per week over 4 weeks. Lots of time, lots of one on one instruction and a chance to create a project of your own design, something unique to you. Have a look at my Mosaic Class page and also the FAQ page for all the details.

Bobbi’s Romantic Floral Mosaic Table

Posted on February 11, 2018February 11, 2018 by Helen

Mosaic Student Bobbi's table, summerhouseart.com

In my mosaic classes I teach Pique Assiette Mosaic, which is a type of mosaic made from broken dishes. This romantic floral table is the creation of my latest mosaic student, Bobbi. Most of the dishes were found in the “Shopping Class” where we poke through thrift shops looking for good dishes to break. By the second class we had a good start on a design. But before the 3^rd Class, Bobbi had discovered while out shopping, a lovely little plate with a floral design that just begged to be featured as a focal point in the center of the table. The only problem was, she needed something to outline that focal point to set it off. A rummage through my stash of dish fragments presented a perfect dish, a pale green dish with embossed flowers, that I’d forgotten I even had! Continue reading “Bobbi’s Romantic Floral Mosaic Table” →

A New Direction: Creating Small Mosaic Studies

Posted on August 11, 2016August 11, 2016 by Helen

Floral mosaic study, Helen Bushell, summerhouseart.com

Lately all you hear is declutter, declutter, throw out, lighten your load, etc, ad nauseam. Recently, I even saw a book that claimed your health would improve by throwing things out. It’s the latest trend.

Well, I happen to be one of those people who hardly ever throws things away. You may think you are throwing something out but it has to go somewhere, like the garbage dump, if it can’t be recycled. As they say, there really is no “away”. We do, however, recycle a lot. In fact, we hardly ever have any garbage for the garbage people to pick up.

I make Pique Assiette mosaics, which means, creating mosaic surfaces from broken dishes. So, essentially, I’ve been making art from all those dishes that others got rid of. I suppose I really should be thankful for all those people who donated all that “clutter” to thrift stores.

Over the years of making mosaics, I’ve accumulated quite a lot of leftover bits and pieces that didn’t make it into the latest mosaic. It’s not clutter. It’s all sorted by color and pattern and stored in recycled salad containers. As I say, there is a lot of it. I just can’t throw it all out. I always have a feeling that someday I might need a certain color or pattern. Of course, whenever I can, my students benefit from my stash of broken bits should they need some color or maybe a floral pattern to augment their pieces.

Which brings me to this latest little mosaic at the top of the post. Looking at all my lovely stash of bits and pieces, I’ve decided to start creating small mosaics. This one is just 6 inches by 6 inches. For the time being I’m planning to make little studies, putting together all those small and precious bits I’ve been saving. It’ll be a nice change from the larger projects I’ve done before. Who knows where it will end? Or how many I’ll make or if maybe I’ll have a show of small mosaics somewhere or maybe post them on our Etsy shop.

This little mosaic, with it’s floral design, will be a gift for a niece’s wedding. Something small and I hope, precious, that she can enjoy in her new home.

Floral mosaic study, Helen Bushell, summerhouseart.com

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