Workshops and presentations
We are excited to be able to offer workshops in conjunction with presentations in the days following the Vernissage on Thursday, Sept. 11th.
Title: Hammer and Hardie ~ Instructor: Ahmed Ibrahim
When: Saturday, Sept. 13th (full day session) ~ Cost: $780.00 ~ All skill levels ~ Max. 8 people
In this intensive 6 hour workshop, students will receive detailed instruction on how to effectively cut materials using the Hammer and Hardie. Working with natural stone and smalti, participants will develop techniques to cut efficiently with minimal waste. Through hands-on practice, students will explore the unique characteristics of different materials, such as hardness and structure, and learn strategies to reduce their size effectively. The workshop also covers proper tool maintenance, including sharpening and caring for the Hammer and Hardie. Participants are welcome to bring their own hammers and materials if they wish.
Link to Register: https://www.zeffy.com/ticketing/mosaic-workshop-with-ahmed-ibrahim-2
Title: Mosaic for Kids ~ Instructors: Akram and Fadia Gabra
When: Sunday, Sept. 14th (half day session in the afternoon) ~ Cost: $65.00 ~ No experience required ~ Min. 8 - Max. 18 people
Practicing this style of art helps in the development of imagination, creativity, problem-solving, concentration, counting, matching, sorting, recognition, attention & patience, assembling & following instructions, decision making, manual skills, memory, logic, perception, intuition, trust when they work in a team, organization, coordinating thoughts and actions as well as coordinating hands and eyes. This will help a child achieve difficult tasks easily, including reading, writing and math skills.
Link to register: https://www.zeffy.com/ticketing/mosaic-workshop-with-akram-and-fadia-gabra
Title: Thinset: Beyond Adhesion ~ Instructor: Angèle Blasutti
When: Saturday, Sept. 13th (half day session in the morning) and Sunday, Sept. 14th (half day session in the morning)
Cost: $195.00 ~ All skill levels ~ Min. 3 - Max. 12 people
In this workshop, students will learn to use Thinset mortar as a building material for creating their own one-of-a kind substrates AND tesserae. Thinset is a popular adhesive used by many contemporary mosaic artists, but thanks to its durability, thinset can also be used to create interesting 3D shapes.
Students will get comfortable mixing thinset and applying it to mesh for the purpose of creating new substrates for future mosaics. As a bonus, and to limit waste, students will learn a few tricks on how to use leftover thinset to create new tesserae.
Students will take home one 5” X 5” substrate and one 3D substrate, and some thinset “tiles”. This course is beginner-friendly but intended for students who wish to take their mosaic skills to the next level.
Link to register: https://www.zeffy.com/en-CA/ticketing/mosaic-workshop-with-angele-blasutti
Title: Micro Mosaic Meadow Pendant Course ~ Instructor: Jennifer Eisen
When: Sunday, Sept 14th (full day session) ~ Cost: $190.00 ~ All skill levels ~ Min. 8 - Max. 12 people
This introductory course will allow participants the opportunity to craft a unique micro mosaic pendant using the Ravenna filati technique. They will first learn a brief history of this painstaking art form, and then will be shown step-by-step how to create a micro mosaic pendant as follows:
How to fill a bezel with Roman Stucco.
How to use a diamond file to score and break filati to make the tiny pieces of tesserae that make up a micro mosaic.
How to insert the filati using tweezers into the stucco to form a design. The meadow design was chosen to showcase unity in this art form using principles of balance, proportion and colour.
How to finish and polish their piece using fine grit abrasives and linseed oil.
Link to register: https://www.zeffy.com/ticketing/mosaic-workshop-with-jennifer-eisen
Title: Scavenger Sculptures: Assemblaged Forms for Mosaic ~
Instructor: Michelena Bamford
When: Saturday, Sept. 13th and Sunday, Sept. 14th (two full day sessions) ~ Cost: $395.00 ~ No experience required, however:
* This course uses metal wire and requires hand strength and fine motor skills ~ Min. 5 - Max. 10 people
Designed for artists eager to take their 2D creations to the next dimension, this session will cover the fundamentals of armature construction while using recycled materials to create strong, light, and uniquely organic forms; ideal for mosaicking.
Students will learn how to build a solid skeleton and work within a regimented, step-by-step process that then allows for unpredictable fun with reclaimed items that shape into unexpected, free forms. Once complete, participants will learn surface preparation to create a perfect base for future mosaic application.
This workshop is a great entry point for experimental sculpture that takes the pressure off figurative and precise modelling with endless possibilities to bring 3D visions to life!
*Please note that this course teaches armature creation only and Does Not include adhering tesserae, though an approach and discussion will be included to help students achieve that final result.
*Overall sculptures will not exceed 18” in any dimension
Link to register: https://www.zeffy.com/ticketing/mosaic-workshop-with-michelena-bamford
Title: Pebblepalooza with Pippa ~ Instructor: Pippa Beck
When: Saturday, Sept. 13th (full day session) ~ Cost: $190.00 ~ All skill levels ~ Min. 5 - Max. 8 people
Students will create a 5” x 5” mosaic using Lake Ontario pebbles. Students will learn the basics of design, how to prepare a substrate, cut pebbles and other materials, as well as how to tint and use mortar. All materials and tools will be provided. Students will come away with a unique piece of pebble mosaic art ready for hanging.
Link to register: https://www.zeffy.com/en-CA/ticketing/mosaic-workshop-with-pippa-beck
Title: Traditional Mosaic Techniques Meet Contemporary Design ~
Instructor: Valerie Brownell
When: Saturday, Sept. 13th (half day session in afternoon) and Sunday, Sept. 14th (full day session) ~ Cost: $325.00
All skill levels, 15 years old and over ~ Min. 3 - Max. 15 people
Students will learn the traditional techniques of ungrouted mosaics while using both traditional and contemporary materials with abstract designs. We will cover mosaic design, materials choices, along with substrate prep, and how to use thinset. We will also discuss the importance of andamento or the flow of the mosaic. Students are encouraged to come to the workshop with a simple abstract design in mind.
Time will be spent allowing each student to try using the hammer and hardie, which are the traditional tools used to cut stone and smalti (the traditional glass used in mosaics) as well as how to use two-wheeled glass cutters and nippers.
Each student will create a 6” (15 cm) x 8” (20cm) wall mosaic on a plywood base to take home.
Link to register: https://www.zeffy.com/ticketing/mosaic-workshop-with-valerie-brownell-2
Workshops
Workshops will be held at the Neilson Park Creative Centre, 56 Neilson Drive, Toronto, On on Saturday, Sept. 13th and Sunday, Sept. 14th. The workshops are either full day sessions or half day sessions. Full day sessions begin at 9 am and end at 4 pm, with an hour for lunch. Morning half day sessions begin at 9 am and end at noon. Afternoon half day sessions begin at 1 pm and end at 4 pm. Click on the link of each workshop to register.
Meet the Instructors
Click on their profile photos to see their work.
Ahmed Ibrahim
Akram & Fadia Gabra
Angèle Blasutti
Jennifer Eisen
Michelena Bamford
Pippa Beck
Valerie Brownell
Presentations
Presentations will be held at the Neilson Park Creative Centre, 56 Neilson Drive, Toronto ON on Friday, Sept. 12th in the Main Gallery. All presentations are free of charge.
Ahmed Ibrahim 9:00 am - 10:00 am
Fragments of Feeling – Expression & Emotion in Mosaic Art
Mosaics are more than just patterns—they tell stories and express emotions. This presentation explores how colour, texture, and composition bring feelings to life in mosaic art. From bright, joyful pieces to raw, fragmented designs that reflect struggle or transformation, each mosaic has a voice.
We’ll also discuss the importance of mosaic titles and how they shape the way we interpret artwork. Through examples and discussion, we’ll see how artists use mosaics to express joy, resilience, nostalgia, and more.
Join us in discovering how mosaics capture emotions and tell powerful visual stories.
Carole Lulham 10:15 am - 11:15 am
Go Play Outside
Musings on creating mosaics for the Great Canadian Outdoors
Join Carole for a discussion on practices, pros and cons, joys and heartbreaks, and hand-on experiences of taking mosaics outdoors, in one of the world’s harshest climates: Canada!
As we proud Canadian mosaic artists face physical challenges of freeze/thaw cycles, extreme temperatures and even hurricanes, what can we do to have the courage to take our work outdoors and improve odds of success?
In recent years, Carole led community projects or completed commissions destined for outdoors. One of these even survived Hurricane Fiona in 2022. She acknowledges the contribution of other artists, mosaic and otherwise, who warmly contributed their knowledge and helped her. This presentation is her effort to continue this tradition of helping fellow artists In Part 1, Carole will share some of her and other artists’ experiences. In Part 2, she will invite questions and ideas from the audience, so we can all learn from our cumulative experiences.
Jennifer Eisen 11:30 am - 12:30 pm
Good Things Come in Small Packages: The Fascinating History of Micro Mosaics
Imagine for a moment, an intricate and ancient mosaic tile floor, like one would find in Italy or Greece. Then imagine it miniaturized and set in a piece of jewelry measuring only 2 inches square. All mosaics are beautiful, but it is the scale and diminutive size of micro mosaics that vaults them into a league of their own.
This unusual and unique art form has a startling history. Starting from the late 1700’s, produced in of all places, the Vatican, to their heyday in the mid 1800’s as souvenirs of wealthy travellers on The Grand Tour, to modern day where it is now almost a completely lost skill, so rare that most people have never heard of them.
In this talk, Jennifer will delve into this fascinating history, beginning with an Italian artist named Giacomo Raffael, believed to be the founding father of this craft, the great jewelry house of Castellani, who elevated micro mosaics into beautiful works of art set in 18K gold, and finally to the group of modern-day artists who painstakingly keep the discipline alive.
Meg Leslie 1:45 pm - 2:45 pm
Pieces and Places and Possibilities
Meg will share her mosaic journey. She will tell the story of how a picture of a mosaic in a book led me to attend a mosaic workshop in Philadelphia in 2009 and how that workshop changed the course of my life. She will be sharing a PowerPoint presentation photos of how she began in pique assiette and the joy of working within a community. She will share a spoken word poem that helped her begin her largest mural (72' long) and how her practice has evolved into her business called Atherley Arts creating backsplashes and fireplaces and public art that has recently garnered the attention of Our Homes Magazine (March 2025).
Michelena Bamford 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm
Magpie Miscellany
“Shiny Object Syndrome: An Anthropomorphic Exploration of the Mosaic Fascination with Collecting.”
Inspired by the magpie’s love of glittery treasures, this playful presentation explores our magnetic attraction to shiny things, through a mosaicist’s lens. Michelena uses her love of animals to examine the psychology of gathering, blending art and anthropology in storytelling. Discover how other mosaicists harness this innate desire and channel it into captivating works of art.