11 Day Mosaic / Icon Painting Workshop
on the fabulous island of Sicily, Italy
Frequently Asked Questions
“How do I get to Sicily?”
Budget airline flights are available from easyjet.com and ryanair.com
We will pick everyone one up from Palermo airport at 12.00 on Thursday 7th October 2010. If you can’t make that pick up then you are free to get a train or a taxi and make your way to Céfalu at your own convenience. Last year a few participants arrived a few days early to relax and settle in.
“Does the fee include meals as well as accommodation and workshops?
Yes it does – breakfast and dinner are included. We will dine out at a different restaurant each night. People are free to make their own arrangements for lunch.
“What is the food like?”
The restaurants in Céfalu are well noted for their excellent local cuisine, particularly the seafood and pizza. Dinner consists of two to three courses each night, including local house wine.
“What is the accommodation like?”
We pre-book apartments which are are rented out to us on an apartment by apartment basis - in other words we pay for each apartment - regardless of how many people are staying in them. The layout in many of the apartments consists of two separate rooms with a shared bathroom and a shared kitchen. These apartments are usually occupied by families - hence our reason for having to charge a SRS - Single Room Supplement. Hence the only participants who DO NOT pay the SRS are those who bring a partner with them.
Because we hold our course out of season we are able to offer the entire course price for less than would usually be paid for an apartment!
The accommodation is booked in cooperation with SICILIANREALTY,
who handle holiday apartments and travel agency in Cefalu, Sicily.
You can visit the Sicilean Realty site by clicking on THESE links:
www.cefalu.it and www.sicilianrealty.com
“What can I do in the afternoons?”
On two days the afternoons will be taken up with the all day visits to the mosaic sites. Other afternoons you may like to take advantage of Céfalu’s lovely beaches. The sea is usually swimmable well into November. From the sea there are fantastic views of the town and the cathedral.
Or if you prefer you can continue to work on your mosaics or icons (untutored).
About The Mosaic Course Itself:
The mosaic course aims to… provide an opportunity for those who have previously made some mosaics and therefore have some experience in mosaic making or enthusiastic beginners to mosaic.
It aims to expand on those existing skills and develop your personal style and creativity.
The course will instruct further in direct and indirect mosaic techniques, using glass tesserae. Grouting techniques will also be covered.
During the course… You will design and make a mosaic approx A3:24 inches x 12 inches / 60 cm x 40 cm in area. Martin will cover numerous techniques to help you understand further about mosaic design.
By the end of the course… a combination of lectures on Roman techniques, demonstrations and individual help will ensure that students will go home fully inspired and equipped to go and tackle larger projects such as patios, tables and murals.
After the course… Many previous participants have gone on to become professional mosaicists whilst others have taken it on as a serious hobby.
The tutor…Martin Cheek has written five best selling books on mosaics. He has been making mosaics professionally for 25 years. Martin graduated in graphic design from Exeter College of Art & Design in 1981. Having made award winning films as a student, he subsequently worked on several puppet animation projects including ‘The Wind in the Willows’ ‘Paddington Bear’ ‘Noddy in Toyland’ and ‘Portland Bill’. He then set up his own production company Cheeky Films Ltd. For many years Martin was a part time lecturer at the Royal College of Art. He is a former art critic for the Daily Express and now works full time as a professional mosaic artist. Martin is regularly commissioned by both private and corporate clients as well as by museums. His work also appears in leading National magazines and newspapers as well as on television.
Martin has tutored workshops in the UK, the USA, France, Holland, Greece, Italy, Turkey, Australia and New Zealand. His weekend courses in the UK and abroad continue to be popular with students from all over the world keen to learn the art of making mosaic. Over 1200 people have now attended Martin’s courses. In April 2008 Martin was the keynote speaker at the international conference of SAMA – The Society of American Mosaic held in Miami, Florida.
You can view Martin’s work by visiting his website: www.martincheek.co.uk
“Are materials included?”
Mosaic: Martin will provide you with 1.5 kg of Orsoni Venetian smalti (mixed colours) & 1.5 kg of Orsoni Roti (mixed colours). For many people this has proved to be sufficient. However there will be a stock of both these materials in a wide range of colours plus various gold leaf smalti and millefiori for those who desire it.
Please note that Martin does NOT provide vitreous glass – as this would be too much for him to ship – if you intend to use vitreous glass please bring your own with you – or contact Martin who will help you arrange this.
“What should I bring with me?”
Work clothes – you may accidentally get glue or pigments on your clothes. An apron is a god idea.
A camera is always a useful thing to bring and if you already have them, then a pair of binoculars or opera glasses will help you to view the mosaics in the churches. A notebook and a sketchpad. A pair of your own glasses or sunglasses will mean that you won’t have to suffer uncomfortable safety goggles.
Mosaic: It would be really useful if you could bring with you two or ideally three design ideas for your potential mosaic. Try to make your ideas different from each other, so that we will be able to discuss the various mosaic possibilities, which your designs will suggest to Martin. Your designs should be between A4 in area (12 x 8 inches or 30 x 20 cm approx) - if you want to finish your mosaic during the course. If you wish to work on a larger scale then that is fine, but be prepared to have to finish your piece at home. – Martin can sell you the necessary extra material required for you to do this.
Keep you designs simple and bold – remember that the tesserae average 2cm x 1 cm in size so don’t make your design too fiddly! A quick glance at any of Martin’s mosaics which you can find in his books or on his websites will show you what this means, but please don’t copy Martin’s mosaics – you could do that at home!
If you don’t have time to prepare any designs before the course, then try and bring some sort of pictorial reference with you. This could be anything from a book to a greetings card that you like or even a piece of wrapping paper or packaging that may have caught your eye.
Mosaic tools – please bring your wheel nippers or side biters with you if you have them, if not please order a pair in advance from Martin. Tweezers are very useful as are dental tools for poking and prodding. Martin will provide some but if you don’t want to share please bring your own.
Suggested reading:
Guide Books:
‘The Rough Guide to Sicily’
Serious:
‘The Normans in Sicily’ by John Julius Norwich.
Entertaining:
‘The Ruby in Her Navel’ by Barry Unsworth – a chilling whodunit set in 12th Century Palermo
The Inspector Montalbano novels by Andrea Camilleri:
‘The Shape of Water’, ‘The Terracotta Dog’ and ‘the Snack Thief’
Films
‘Cinema Paradiso’, ‘Il Postino’ ‘The Godfather Trilogy’
If you have any other queries please don’t hesitate to call us -our contact details are:
Martin: Tel: +44 (0)1843 861958 Mobile: +44 (0)794 988 4620
or Email: martin@martincheekmosaics.com
We look forward to seeing you in Sicily!
Warmest wishes Martin.
Flint House, 21 Harbour Street, Broadstairs, Kent CT10 1ET, UK.
Phone: +44 (0)1843 861958
Mobile: +44 (0)7949 884620
martin@martincheekmosaics.com
www.flinthouseart.com
