Mosaic: Breaking Down Barriers, Connecting Certain Universes
In June 2022, TUMO Studios became part of the MOSAIC project, co-founded by the European Union. MOSAIC stands for Mastering Job-Oriented Skills in Arts and Crafts thanks to Inclusive Centers of Vocational Excellence, a name that reflects the mission of the program.
The MOSAIC project focuses on three areas within the Arts and Crafts sector: Traditional and Rare Crafts, Precious Metals and Jewelry, and Furniture and Wood, and their relationship with Design, Arts, and Industry. This platform for transnational cooperation brings together relevant EU and non-EU partners to foster excellence in Vocational Education and Training (VET) within the Arts & Crafts sector, ensuring high-quality skills that lead to quality employment and lifelong career opportunities. The program aligns with the needs of an innovative, inclusive, and sustainable economy.
Armenia, Canada, France, Italy, Finland, and Bulgaria are part of the MOSAIC project, which has 15 partners, including two from non-EU countries.
The objectives of the program include:
- Improving cooperation between private companies and VET centers to create mutual benefits.
- Enhancing VET provision by developing new training modules.
Promoting internationalization and transnational strategies in response to VET and societal evolutions. - Providing forward-looking VET through digital methodologies and tools.
The program expects to achieve the following results:
- Creation of a European observatory of arts and crafts to reflect the sector’s market needs, collect findings, and publish topics related to the sector, including an online scientific journal.
- Development of training courses for students and teachers on topics such as entrepreneurship, social inclusion, digitalization, portfolio making, 3D modeling, woodworking, and furniture design.
- Creation of an online catalog of study abroad programs (mobility of students participating in Arts and Crafts courses).
TUMO Studios has had a long and enriching journey with the MOSAIC project over the past two years, and we are excited for what’s to come. Since 2022, we have been working on creating three courses on portfolio making, 3D modeling and 3D printing in jewelry making, and social Inclusion.
The portfolio making course guides students through the process of developing and presenting their projects, reflecting their philosophy and desired outcomes. It concludes with the creation of a digital portfolio and self-promotion strategies. The course is divided into four modules: self-discovery, portfolio development, portfolio layout and advertising, and self-marketing.
The second course, 3D modeling and 3D printing in jewelry making, is divided into three modules, teaching essential skills for the jewelry industry, covering 3D modeling, Rhino software, 3D printing, and industry updates. Students will gain insight into the rapidly evolving jewelry industry, particularly regarding its economic growth, new demands, and challenges, including corporate social responsibility.
The third course, social inclusion, is designed for teachers and aims to equip them with inclusive teaching skills, creating a more diverse and equal educational environment. It consists of four modules: universal design for learning (UDL), unconscious bias, mindful self-compassion, and positive learning.
Over these two years, we have traveled, studied, taught, and collaborated with many people, sharing the same beliefs as MOSAIC. In September 2022, the first kickoff meeting of the MOSAIC project took place in Lyon, France. TUMO Studios’ managerial team, including Deputy Director Mariam Khachatryan, Educational Program Manager Svetlana Barseghyan, Design Manager Christopher Karaguezian, and Production and Sales Manager Patil Jivian, participated in the meeting, visited SEPR, and officially launched the project.
In March 2023, the second meeting took place in Sofia, Bulgaria. Svetlana Barseghyan (Educational Program Manager) participated in this organizational meeting as a MOSAIC regional manager in Armenia.
In October 2023, team members Shushan Ayvazyan (Jewelry Technician) and Svetlana Barseghyan (Educational Program Manager) visited Bologna, Italy. With this meeting, the team started development of educational modules of MOSAIC. On this occasion Studios team members Christopher Karakoussayan (Design Manager) and Shushan Ayvazyan visited Espoo, Finland in March 2024.
Most recently, in September 2024, five TUMO Studios students, accompanied by the team member Lilit Ghazaryan, participated in the International Skills Performance organized by the MOSAIC. Hosted by SEPR, this event brought together 34 students from VET schools involved in the MOSAIC partnership. Students demonstrated their creativity and skills in woodworking, jewelry making, graphic design, shoemaking, and industrial and product design, using recycled materials to create sustainable and innovative objects. Guided by experts and mentors, they worked in multicultural and multidisciplinary groups throughout the hackathon, engaging in a series of workshops and activities.
As we continue our journey with MOSAIC, we look forward to further collaborations and expanding our contribution to the arts and crafts sector. The past two years have been filled with learning, innovation, and creativity, and we are excited to see what the next two years will bring as we work together to foster excellence in vocational education and training.