Base and Sculpture Making for Mosaics

Learn Sharra’s innovative methods for creating lightweight, refined and highly customized bases and sculptures for fine art mosaics.

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If you are interested in creating detailed and customized surfaces and sculptures for mosaic and mixed media art, without the use of concrete, this is the class for you!

After many years of offering this class in studios around the country, I am thrilled to finally have it available online! Students have traveled from far and wide to attend this workshop and now all of the class contents, in addition to valuable bonus material, is available your fingertips.

This course was first launched online in the spring of 2018. The response was so much bigger than expected (exciting!) that I divided the students into smaller groups. Each group had their own private webinar with the opportunity to share their project hopes and dreams and receive individual feedback. We had a blast! These webinars were all recorded and are included in the class, over four hours in total.

This class now has open registration- meaning that you can register and join us at any time.

More details below!

Registration is open! Join us anytime and take the class is at your own pace.

Cost:
$300

Access:
Lifetime

Also included in the class:

A private facebook group

Downloadable Handouts, Guides and Resources

Lifetime Access at Your Own Pace

In this popular class, students will learn Sharra’s innovative methods for creating refined and highly customized bases and sculptures for fine art mosaics and beyond. Take in an in-depth overview of Sharra’s favorite concrete-free sculpting products, tools and techniques that have been used in her privately and publicly commissioned mosaic artwork and teachings since 2006.

Students will experiment with the effective techniques and products introduced to create their own one-of-a-kind mosaic substrates. The class will be part lecture and demonstration through detailed videos. Over 4 hours of previously recorded Q&A webinars where students received personalized feedback and support on their specific project goals from Sharra is also included in the course.

This class will focus on the topics and challenges of creating bases, sculptures and armatures for mosaics and mixed media art. While the instruction will not cover mosaic technique, it will address the importance of anticipating and preparing for the mosaic application and design along the way.

The Secrets of Mosaicking with Beads Class is a perfect follow up course to this one to learn how to best apply a mosaic design and application to your new bases and sculptures.



The Base & Sculpture for Mosaic Making course will particularly benefit those who are interested in greatly expanding their personal “tool box” and learning a wide range of professional options available when creating their own custom surfaces for their mosaic artwork and beyond.

Sharra has taught this popular class through her private studio, the Institute of Mosaic Art in Berkeley, CA and through the Society of American Mosaic Artists annual conference, the American Mosaic Summit. It debuted online for the first time during the spring of 2017.

Students from the Institute of Mosaic Art, 2016

Students from the San Diego American Mosaic Summit, Society of American Mosaic Artists Conference, 2016

Base & Sculpture Making for Mosaics... How it all began

In 2007, I was eager, bright eyed, 27 years old and had just moved into a big, sunshiny studio in the Northeast Minneapolis Arts District. I had a few years of teaching under my belt with a steady attendance in my monthly intro to mosaic class called Mosaic Window Hangings.

Teaching was a natural extension of my work and a fulfilling way to connect with other creatives while networking within my local community. My regular students began to frequently request a sculpture class after seeing this giant pear commission that I was working on.


To meet their request, I began offering the Base & Sculpture Making for Mosaics class 2-3 times a year. Students came in with their big ideas and I provided the technical steps and personally vetted products to support them. We tackled amazing and exciting pieces! Thankfully, I took exceptional notes and photos that will now be included in this new online course, ten years later!

More recently, in 2016, I bravely took this class on the road... twice. This required heavy duty travel (literally, stuffing my luggage with 50 pounds of jigsaws, files, sculpting compounds and tile board) and swift coordination of shipments, covering all the other equipment and product needs of the class. I’ve since decided that this class is better suited to travel lightly via the inter-webs, floating gracefully from my screen to yours!

In this class, I introduce my tried and true, most favorite sculpting products, tools and techniques. We explore how to use them for two and three dimensionally sculpted bases. I have several project samples to share with you, which can be replicated or modified to your liking, like this sculpted pear with a recessed alcove.

sculpted pear with recessed alcove
After this class, you will confidently create pieces that will be lightweight, strong, stable and uniquely yours. No more need to scour shops for the perfect ready made base! While creating sculptures and bases, it is my priority to retain the elegance, refinement and strength of the envisioned form. This can be a challenge with heavy duty tools and construction materials. I share alternatives and open up a whole new world of possibilities to you!

Here is another class demo, a shrine box that can stand up on it's own. After being mosaicked, it will hold a candle and collection of findings.


In addition to the technical information in this online class, we will also learn how to DESIGN a pleasing shape and silhouette for sculptural forms. Train your eye with practice and support. A mosaic begins with it's base!

This sculpted butterfly, a class demo, is now ready to take flight with beads and glass!


Learn how to balance integrity and elegance while creating fine art sculptures suited for mosaic art and beyond. Want to see more? Check out these student photos from the some of the in-studio classes and join us in the online class. I can't wait to see what you create!


BASE & SCULPTURE MAKING FOR MOSAICS CLASS CURRICULUM


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Your Instructor


Sharra Frank
Sharra Frank
In 2000, I made my first mosaic during art school. As a poor, starving, stereotypical art student, my grocery money was already going towards endless paint and paper supplies so I started very simple with a hammer, free white wall tile and Elmer's glue. To my roommate's horror, I smashed the tile up and glued it all onto my coffee table with absolute GLEE!

I kept experimenting and that lead to thrifted china, stained glass, shells, buttons, paper and beads- everything! I couldn't wait to finish school to have more time for mosaics. I eagerly started exhibiting, teaching and taking small mosaic commissions during college. My midwest art professors didn't know what to do with it (I should have gone to Italy!) so mosaics became my secret art on the side, outside of school. Then, I began sculpting and creating my own forms and surfaces to mosaic onto and the process just kept escalating, as the mosaic life tends to do!


For many years as a working artist, I focused mainly on large scale commissions for designers and art consultants, public installations with nonprofits and communities and teaching workshops around the country and online to thousands of students around the world. In 2020, I scaled everything way back for a few years to fit into a new homeschooling routine with my three children… and it was such a gift!


I found that smaller scaled work translated so effectively on social media (a 10' mosaic or 10" mosaic still looks the same size on an iphone, right?!) and this allowed me to efficiently share so much more of what I do (finishing a piece in a single week rather than months- yes, please!). I already had years of experience editing my process for online classes so making reels came naturally.

This rapidly grew my presence on IG and FB and has launched my business into creating a custom product line of mosaic frames, kits, supplies, classes and a more recently, a Mosaic Membership. If you are curious about starting mosaics and learning more with me, I have many options for you and much more to come in 2026!

If you are interested in my mosaic frames, kits, mosaic art and prints visit shop.sharrafrank.com.

Reach out with any questions. I LOVE to hear from you!

Thanks so much for your support and business!

Sharra


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