Tag Archives: Art Tours

Treasures of Barcelona and Madrid with Maverick Mosaics

19 May

Treasures of Barcelona and Madrid
Maverick Mosaics
September 12 – 21, 2014
$2995

Travel Abroad with Maverick Mosaics as Adult Art Camp goes International!

Mosaic Art Retreats SpainOur second international trip will be to the colorful country of Spain to pay homage to three of Spain’s most important native sons: Pablo Picasso, Antonio Gaudi and Salvador Dali.

Introducing the trip of a lifetime for anyone with a sense of adventure. Get ready to enjoy a long week of culture, history, contemporary art, great food and a hands-on project. You’ll experience the splendor of Spain in the spirit of Maverick Mosaics’ successful Art Camp format: learn, create and laugh.

Take in the magic and beauty of Spain with like-minded and adventuresome companions. Your trip will be filled with fun adventures and designed to entertain while providing unique learning experiences. We offer hassle-free travel, wonderful accommodations, and street-level cultural engagement based in the world of art and architecture. We plan at least two hands-on workshops including making mosaics.

Mosaic Art Retreats SpainOur adventure begins in Madrid as we spend our first day discovering the wonders of the Royal Palace and Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, where Picasso’s masterpiece “Guernica” is enshrined. With Madrid as our home base, you’ll make day trips to Segovia and Toledo. In Toledo our day includes time at the cathedral Santo Tomé to view an El Greco masterpiece and a visit to Sinagoga de Santa Maria la Blanca. We’ll visit internationally recognized potters and renowned Toledo sword makers whose blades have been sought after from around the world (think Zorro, swashbuckling Earl Flynn and Samurai warriors!).

En route to Segovia, a must-see stop at El Escorial is planned. The building is the most important architectural monument of the Spanish Renaissance. After a magical day in Segovia, where architecture dates to Roman times, we’ll train to Barcelona.

Mosaic Art Retreats SpainOnce in Barcelona you’ll have a series of fabulous art filled experiences: The Picasso Museum, a guided tour of Gaudi’s Bascilica de la Sagrada Familia, Park Güell and La Pedrera. You’ll make your own mosaic in the spirit of Gaudi and revel in the magic of the city as we make our way touring its famous sights. Topping off our time in Barcelona, we’ll visit the Salvador Dali museum, one of the most unique and multi-sensory museums in the world.

Professionally led wine tastings, fine food and dancing are also scheduled along the way. We wrap up our trip with a day at the beach in breathtaking Sitges. Just a short drive from Barcelona, this is “The Jewel” of the Catalan coast.

Maverick’s inaugural Art Camp trip to France in June 2013 was amazing, thanks in large part to the expertise and planning of our travel and logistics partner A La Carte Travel. A La Carte Travel is the nation’s leader in exclusively providing educational institutions with affordable access to learning opportunities abroad, and Maverick Mosaics qualifies as an educational institution. Hassle free travel is paramount, ground transportation and transfers are included, no waiting in lines for scheduled tours and we have a full time English/Spanish speaking escort traveling with us. A La Carte Travel promotes the values of understanding the world we live in through experiencing and learning about different cultures. With over 16 years of experience organizing educational tours, A La Carte Travel is the perfect partner with Maverick Mosaics for this unique travel and learning adventure.

For more details, trip itinerary, workshop details and costs please click here.

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Navigating Airfares: Knowing When to Buy

24 Mar

Low Airfare YipsWhen I first started doing my own research and finding my own best fares, it was a pretty peachy thrill. I felt so in control. The world was my oyster, and I could grab a ticket to explore it with a few taps of my fingers. Possibilities were spilling open, and yet … in retrospect, the decisions were pretty simple. Online sites were few (expedia), flights were many, and pricing made some sense. Now, well … things have changed.

I still love dreaming up a getaway and making it happen, but I confess that my finger trembles a bit more while hovering over the Confirm button. Am I saving a bundle or blowing one? Should I wait to book tomorrow, or was last week my last best chance?

I was happy for a little hand holding by Airfare Watchdog this week in the form of their 2014 guide to booking Low. Check it out, and plan something lovely.

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Italy Anyone? May 2013

29 Nov

Eye candy for the soul! Inspiration for the artist.

If you see anything you like, I’ll be leading a mosaic workshop / retreat to Italy May 12 – 18, 2013. Drink in the beauty of old walls and endless vistas, then learn how to translate your photographs into strong mosaic designs. We’ll be working small, so there will be plenty of time to soak up culture, feed the spirit, and try out a new way of being. More information here. More motivation below.

Click on the first photo to enlarge, and then browse your way through a few of my past trips to beautiful Italy. Hope you’ll join me in May!

Bronze Anyone?
Portico
Grocery Shopping
Windows on Italy
Rome in the Rain
Decorated Facade
Fire in the Sky
Wine and Chocolate
Dinner al Fresco
Church Mosaic
Bicycling in Rome
Pantheon at Night
Banks of the Tiber beneath Sycamore Shade
Pantheon Pigeons
Clouds above the Tiber
Real Food
Market Day
Italy and Ivy
Lovely in Florence
Artistic Commentary
Oranges at Campo de Fiori
Architecture Rules
Wall of Love
Italian Balconies
Street Artist
Sunset Dinner
Roman Forum
Art is Everywhere
Fountain
Just another Italian Street . . .
Windows on Italy
Fall Vines
Remaining walls from the Baths of Diocletian (306 AD), behind Santa Maria degli Angeli
Architecture
Mosaic Floor; love the rambling andamento
Laundry Day
Self Portrait 🙂
Street Lights
Welcome!

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Mosaic Intensive with Sonia King: Paros, Greece, 2013

6 Nov

*WAIT LIST ONLY

Mosaic Intensive: Greece
Working in White on the Greek Island of Paros
with Sonia King
June 17 – 21, 2013
$2375

Mosaic Art Retreats GreeceJoin Sonia for an intensive five-day mosaic workshop on the sun-drenched island of Paros in Greece.  Paros is famous for the beautiful white marble that the ancient Greeks carved into statues like the Venus de Milo. We’ll take our inspiration from this amazing material and work all in whites, tone on tone. This will be a rare opportunity to enhance your mosaic skills in an inspiring and stimulating environment.

Sonia King Intensive GreeceCreating mosaic in a monochrome palette emphasizes the focus on cutting, laying style, reflectivity, scale and texture. Limiting possible decisions to the primary principles of mosaic offers learning opportunities that color can mask. Technically, there will be extensive inquiry into cutting techniques, methods of laying and broadening your skill set. The class specifically covers working with texture, scale, andamento and spacing; achieving effects through varied cutting and laying styles and/or mixed materials, working direct. There will be discussions about design, the complexity of working with more than one material, reflectivity and more. Most importantly, you’ll leave the workshop with an elevated sense of what mosaic is about, a new way of thinking about your work and the knowledge to enable you to push to the next level. Prior mosaic experience is recommended. Some white materials will be supplied. (A list of the supplied materials will be sent in advance so class participants can bring additional materials, or even additional colors, if they wish.)

Mosaic Art Retreats GreeceThere will be an optional side trip on one day, by ferry, to the island of Delos to see ancient mosaics.  Participants may choose to come along or to remain in the studio working.  The atmosphere will be relaxed and there will be ample time for swimming and sunning on the beach steps away from our hotel.

Mosaic Art Retreats GreeceThe course fee includes:
* Get-acquainted dinner on the evening before the workshop begins, June 16
* Individual instruction/coaching by Sonia, structured to meet each participant’s experience level and goals.
* Group discussions on the art of mosaic, cutting techniques, ergonomics, technical issues, the business of art, critical thinking and problem-solving strategies for design/implementation and more.
* Substrate, adhesive, marble and the use of a hammer/hardie. Bring your own hand tools. Participants may also want to bring additional materials to work with, such as glass, unglazed ceramic, smalti, beads, found objects, etc. More info on recommended tools and materials will be supplied.
* Optional day trip to visit ancient mosaics on the island of Delos with lunch and shopping opportunities on Mykonos
* Closing night dinner party, June 21

Not included:
* Transportation (airfares, ferries, taxis, etc.)
* Meals (other than breakfast at the hotel and the get-acquainted and closing dinners)
* Optional side trip to visit the ancient mosaics on island of Delos plus lunch & shopping on Mykonos

Mosaic Art Retreats GreeceSpace is limited so early registration is recommended.  Cost is $2,375 US. Ten participants are required for the class to be held. A deposit of $500 is required on booking and the class fills on a first-come basis. Balance of the fee is due by February 1st, allowing ample time for buying air tickets at the best price.  After February 1st, refunds will be given provided the opening is filled. (There is always a wait list so a refund is likely.) Refunds will be less any money transfer fees. Payment may be made by US $ checks, US $ wire transfer, Western Union or PayPal. (PayPal incurs a small percentage transaction fee)

Direct inquiries to Sonia.
Include contact info (name, address, phone, e-mail). As the workshop approaches, recommended tool information, details about materials and advice about logistics will be sent.

See images from the 2011 workshop on Paros

Click here for a flyer in PDF format for printing

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Mosaic Art Retreats: More Mexico 2013

27 Oct

Mosaic Art Retreats

What’s Up in Puerto Vallarta? SIX mosaic retreats at Hacienda Mosaico!

12/2 – 12/8, 2012 Carol Shelkin, Faces, Flowers & The Human Form in Mosaic

2/10 – 2/16, 2013 Woulterina “Riana” de Raad, Life-Size Mosaic-Covered Concrete Sculpture

2/17 – 2/23, 2013 Shug Jones, Fun with Figurative Mosaics

3/3 – 3/9, 2013 Susan Wechsler, Spirit Houses

5/5 – 5/11, 2013 Bonnie Fitzgerald, Large-Scale Mosaic Murals

Read more about Hacienda Mosaico here.

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New Worlds

25 Oct

Mosaic Art Retreats

Gotta say — I love this quote. I was 41 before I left home alone on my first international trip, and 42 when I arrived solo for three weeks in a country whose language I couldn’t speak. In fact, I didn’t even know the alphabet! I still remember stepping onto a bus in the dark after 15 hours of travel and being dumbstruck by the reality of what I was doing. How could I have been so naive totally lacking in good sense?????

And I am eternally grateful, because those three weeks alone in Crete taught me more about myself than 42 years of living, and worlds about “foreigners”, adventure, and the biggest risk of all — opening the eyes and heart to new experiences.

More, please.

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Get Out

30 Sep

One of the biggest problems I have when it comes to creating is getting OUT of my own head. Schedules, an ever-expanding To Do list with far too few check marks, voices reminding me of imminent emergencies that always take precedence over creative time (sigh . . . I can’t finish that book/painting/quilt/journal when this toaster clearly needs washing!) and day-to-day necessities (food and the occasional shower) crowd my brain and pull a veil of shetland wool over any creative urges that long to see the light of day.

My solution to getting out of my own repetitious agenda is to get OUT of my head by getting OUT of my house. Even walking to the mailbox on the corner or driving for a spin through a few distant neighborhoods is enough to reset the gears and give my creative side a little voice. Oooh, look at the colors in that tree! Wow, I had no idea this park was here. I wonder where this path leads? The sound of the birds replaces my routine inner humming; the curve of a petal resets my spacial imaginings; a pop of chartreuse refracts possibilities through my eyes.

But the best recharging I do is through travel. I long to get far enough away from myself and my neural travel paths to reset everything inside me. I love wandering through a country with new eyes, particularly when my grasp of the language is timid enough to keep me mostly silent and watching, alert for nuances and glimpses into other cultures, other ways of being. Exploring new places is always fun, but the complete makeover of SAME OLD ME is life-giving. Suddenly everything is new — unfamiliar recipes tickle the palate; regional patterns and colors excite and inspire; vistas across the Italian countryside parallel a sense of endless possibility; cultural curiosities encourage you to go deep inside to pull your own mysteries into your art.

Grab a backpack or the Louis Vuittons, book that ticket, and get out. Dive into the unfamiliar and let it envelop and transform you. I guarantee you two things: a new outlook and a heap of inspiration.

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