Head Planter Mosaic with Karen Kingsbury
Once you make one you can't stop...your plants and gardens will never be the same
Watch Promo Enroll in Course
Mosaic Arts Online is delighted to welcome Karen Kingsbury to the studio to present her unique and highly sought after mixed media garden art course, “Head Planter Mosaic with Karen Kingsbury.”
Starting with a simple styrofoam base, Karen will walk you through each step necessary to create your own unique personal planter. You are the designer! Karen provides the tips and techniques to help you bring your vision to life. You will learn how to hollow out the planter, create drainage, and apply mesh and cement to build a solid substrate.
Next she will describe how to mosaic the eyes, mouth and other features, with individual sections on creating realistic hair and skin tones, and using the direction of tesserae for advantageous effect. Then she will cover decorating the base with cups, dishes and other media for the clothing, collars and buttons to really personalize your creation.
Karen is a big fan of Apoxie Sculpt to hold tesserae in place, move around, and keep everything clean. She will explain how to best use this material and how to grout your finished piece to create a weather resistant sculpture for your garden or outdoor space. Once you have completed this course the options are limitless in creating your very own whimsical mosaic head planter for your garden.
A PDF list of tools, materials, and resources, is provided and available for download.
Your Instructor
Karen has always loved to make and experiment with garden art. A native Californian, she has lived abroad for 10 years in two very different settings: Nicaragua in Central American and the Marshall Islands in Micronesia, teaching English to children and adults, while learning new cultures and languages.
Her creative interest took a back seat to being a full-time single mom, and while her two boys grew up back in the States, she earned two degrees in English as a Second/Foreign Language. At San Francisco State she became the Director of New Student Programs and for 25 years helped students and families prepare for degrees, and designed and implemented a successful peer counseling program.
While working as an educator, experimenting in the garden was always her happy place. Mixing mediums and working with cement, wood, clay, jewelry, and painting lead her naturally to mosaics. At the point she retired from the university, she was finally able to launch a business and make art full time. She turned her home into a creative space and wakes each day to make more art! She approaches her art from a whimsical lens. It makes her happiest to people react to her pieces with joy and laughter. Currently she teaches her style of mosaics in Modesto, California continuing to find ways to mix it up in mosaics.
Course Curriculum
-
StartIntroduction and personal interview with Karen and Tami. (8:09)
-
StartPDF Tools, Materials, and Resources available for download.
-
StartVisual intro to tools and materials for fabrication of the head. (4:21)
-
StartHow to choose the right head. (3:55)
-
StartStarting with a design. (4:46)
-
StartCutting the top of the head. (5:23)
-
StartCarving out the head. (9:43)
-
StartCarving out more of the head. (3:25)
-
StartFitting the drainage pipe. (2:33)
-
StartCreating the base. (4:37)
-
StartAttaching the head to the base and gluing in drain pipe. (4:47)
-
StartCutting and clearing the drain pipe. (2:00)
-
StartIntro to materials for thinset/mortar section of the project. (5:21)
-
StartSealing the drain pipe. (6:33)
-
StartAdding the mesh. (10:19)
-
StartCreating the slurry. (3:45)
-
StartApplying the slurry. (4:41)
-
StartApplying the second layer. (5:25)
-
StartSanding the cured thinset/mortar. (7:45)
-
StartOverview before starting to mosaic. (2:21)
-
StartAlways start with the eyes. (2:46)
-
StartEyes Part 2. (9:25)
-
StartEyes Part 3. (6:25)
-
StartAdding Eyeliner. (7:50)
-
StartSalvador's Eyebrows. (9:26)
-
StartReveal completed eyes. (1:40)
-
StartCreating the mouth. (7:37)
-
StartMouth Part 2. (2:16)
-
StartHow to create the hair. (2:47)
-
StartHow to hair movement and texture. (4:18)
-
StartCreating hair texture with tesserae. (7:47)
-
StartCreating the ears. (6:23)
-
StartFinishing the hair on Salvador. (9:29)
-
StartGrout Part 1. (6:54)
-
StartGrouting process in pictures.
-
StartCompleting the head planter mosaic. (6:10)
-
StartWrap up and Thank you! (2:11)