Join Alison for a week of joyful exploration of Place, in the beautiful city of Cortona. Sitting in ancient squares, by fountains, or in cafes, I’ll show you some simple ways to capture buildings. In markets we’ll talk about how to include figures in your sketches. Overlooking vistas of vineyards and far off hills, we’ll explore how to simplify the scene to focus on important elements and create depth. Drawing and painting on loose pages rather than in a watercolour journal, allows us to loosen up and have fun with experimental techniques and a variety of media. We’ll work with watercolour, pen, ink, marker, on different papers, to create images, which we will curate into a concertina book.
 
Location: Cortona, Italy
Instructor: Alison Watt
Cost: From $3,790.00 per person all-inclusive
Sponsor: Toscana Americana Workshops
Website, email, 978-407-7127

Just imagine….200 year old olive trees, charming hilltop villages, bustling outdoor cafés and window boxes overflowing with colorful flowers. Now, put yourself in the picture, sitting at a little café with your sketchbook and paints, sketching a window across the way, with its lace curtains, blue shutters, and red geraniums. Can you see it? Can you feel it? Well, why not experience it? Join me for an unforgettable painting holiday in Provence, a region famous for its stunning scenery and clear light which has captivated artists through the centuries. In this week-long workshop, we’ll relax and enjoy long autumn days sketching in this stunningly beautiful part of France. Capture once-in-a-lifetime experiences on the pages of your watercolor journals!
 
Location: Fontaine de Vaucluse, France
Instructor: Leslie Fehling
Cost: $3,990
Sponsor: French Escapade
Website, email, 510-483-5713

We will be a lovely small group where I can work with you individually to ensure that every aspect of the experience meets your expectations. There will be plenty of opportunity to have your questions answered and have fun along the way. I will show you how to make fast improvements by sharing my most successful tips for watercolour sketching. You will receive plenty of demonstrations and examples to support you along the way. Learn how to sketch confidently, understand paint consistency and application and mix wonderful glowing colours! The subjects covered will be truly inspirational – including beautiful beaches, cliffs, boats, botanical garden, local scenes and sketching the everyday such as your lunch.
 
Location: Costa Brava/Barcelona, Spain
Instructor: Judy Salleh
Cost: $3,790
Sponsor: French Escapade
Website, email, 510-483-5713

A Sketchbook Journaling Workshop with Karen Ramsay. Come join us and capture Mallorca in watercolor! As we fill our art travel journals with sketching and watercolors, Karen will give us tips and tricks for improving this special skill. Sketching on location, while traveling, is an art form that you can take with you on every future trip. The daily sketches that you create will become a treasured visual diary of your travel. During this week in Mallorca, we will explore the island, its many scenic areas - from the gorgeous views over the Mediterranean Sea to the small towns in the Tramuntana mountain range: the artist town of Deia, the scenic towns of Fornalutx and Valldemossa and the capital Palma.
 
Location: Valldemossa, Mallorca, Spain
Instructor: Karen Ramsay
Cost: $3,890
Sponsor: Alpine Creative Tours
Website, email, 970-846-9000

5-star Painting and Cultural Cruise - Italian Riviera and France! 9 nights: from Barcelona to Rome. All Mediums | All Levels | Non-Painters | Independent Painters. Welcome to our exciting painting cruise across three countries! Embark on an extraordinary 5-star Mediterranean cruise, an artistic journey that unfolds from Barcelona to Rome. This luxurious voyage includes enchanting stops along the picturesque Italian Riviera and captivating destinations in France. As you sail through azure waters and experience the opulence of a 5-star cruise, immerse yourself in unique painting adventures at each port of call. Ports of Call: Barcelona, Marseille (Provence), Nice, Santa Margherita (Portofino), La Spezia (Cinque Terre, Florence, Pisa), Naples and Rome.
 
Location: Mediterranean Cruise, Italy
Instructor: Vladislav Yeliseyev
Cost: see website
Sponsor: Renaissance School of Art
Website, email, 941-330-6865

5-star Painting and Cultural Cruise - Italian Riviera and France! 9 nights: from Barcelona to Rome. All Mediums | All Levels | Non-Painters | Independent Painters. Welcome to our exciting painting cruise across three countries! Embark on an extraordinary 5-star Mediterranean cruise, an artistic journey that unfolds from Barcelona to Rome. This luxurious voyage includes enchanting stops along the picturesque Italian Riviera and captivating destinations in France. As you sail through azure waters and experience the opulence of a 5-star cruise, immerse yourself in unique painting adventures at each port of call. Ports of Call: Barcelona, Marseille (Provence), Nice, Santa Margherita (Portofino), La Spezia (Cinque Terre, Florence, Pisa), Naples and Rome.
 
Location: Mediterranean Cruise, France
Instructor: Vladislav Yeliseyev
Cost: see website
Sponsor: Renaissance School of Art
Website, email, 941-330-6865

5-star Painting and Cultural Cruise - Italian Riviera and France! 9 nights: from Barcelona to Rome. All Mediums | All Levels | Non-Painters | Independent Painters. Welcome to our exciting painting cruise across three countries! Embark on an extraordinary 5-star Mediterranean cruise, an artistic journey that unfolds from Barcelona to Rome. This luxurious voyage includes enchanting stops along the picturesque Italian Riviera and captivating destinations in France. As you sail through azure waters and experience the opulence of a 5-star cruise, immerse yourself in unique painting adventures at each port of call. Ports of Call: Barcelona, Marseille (Provence), Nice, Santa Margherita (Portofino), La Spezia (Cinque Terre, Florence, Pisa), Naples and Rome.
 
Location: Mediterranean Cruise, Spain
Instructor: Vladislav Yeliseyev
Cost: see website
Sponsor: Renaissance School of Art
Website, email, 941-330-6865

Urban sketching is a skill anybody can learn! It will change the way you perceive the world. Whether you are a novice or a sketcher who feels they can do better, this workshop is for you. The focus is on black and white. It is the foundation of all sketching styles. Build confidence and practice urban sketching to capture the essence of the place by learning: What to look for, How to start the sketch, How to simplify the busy surroundings. Your Facilitator: Cristiana Mar is an experienced artist, architect, and educator, teaching adults, leading workshops in US and Mexico since 1989. Our location is Guanajuato, World Heritage city, the capital of Guanajuato state.
 
Location: Guanajuato, Mexico
Instructor: Cristiana Mar
Cost: $500.00
Sponsor: Cristi Fer Art
Website, email, 322-153-1906

Granada in the south of Spain is one of the most exciting, different, and welcoming cities I know. So much is going on there in the culture historically and present. We will work mostly in our sketchbooks and Journals during our week in Granada. Moving around with only a backpack and light stools will be easier. We’ll be sketching alleys and mountains, the old casbah, and the famous Alhambra from inside and its surroundings—Flamenco performances in local bars, also gardens, and urban views. We will stay in beautiful accommodation in the heart of the old city, and from there we will have access to our sketching adventure.
 
Location: Granada, Spain
Instructor: Tali Farchi
Cost: €2900
Sponsor: Artist Table
Website, email, +31 6 24903316

Join our unique art workshop in South America and experience the stunning Caribbean coast from Puerto Colombia (Barranquilla) to Cartagena. Learn perspective drawing and the fundamentals of watercolors and taste the best of Colombian Caribbean food and culture. After an art class, try a "mojarra con arroz con coco" with a cold Colombian beer. Sketch on the beach, attend cooking demonstrations by local chefs, join a street food tour, and more. The price of CAD 3050 per person (around US$2250) includes eight-night double accommodation in well rated hotels, all ground transportation, all breakfasts, one lunch, two suppers, one street food tour, art instruction, cooking presentations, art supplies, and more. Single rooms available for CAD 810 (around US$ 600).
 
Location: Cartagena, Colombia
Instructor: Prof. Yves M. Larocque
Cost: US$2250
Sponsor: Walk the Arts
Website, email, 800-611-4789

Join Botanical Artist Ann Swan, RHS Gold Medalist and author of ‘Botanical Painting with Coloured Pencils’ for a week of Botanical drawing with a specific focus on creating contrast using coloured pencils. In this workshop Ann will show you how to interpret light and shade and to accurately capture contrasting tonal values to create a true sense of three-dimensional form and volume in your work. Ann will demonstrate ways of creating realistic highlights and sheen and help you choose convincing shade colours to create depth in shadows whilst maintaining vibrant colours so that your work will come to life on the page.
 
Location: Pau, France
Instructor: Ann Swan
Cost: 1595€ to 2695€ for accommodation + £400 tuition fee
Sponsor: Atelier Clos Mirabel
Website, email, +33.6.79.59.04.91

Join Michelle EunYoung Song (SBA Fellow) for one week of botanical art using coloured pencils. Michelle will guide you on how to capture a beautiful moment at Clos Mirabel. Together, we will explore the grounds of Clos Mirabel which has an abundance of plants growing in May. Back in the studio, Michelle will guide you through a detailed study of your specimen. You will use pencil drawings in a sketchbook that will produce data for your detailed painting. You will also practice making the proper colour using coloured pencils. The tuition is exacting and clear so that by the end of the week you will have the capacity to create a more detailed botanical painting.
 
Location: Pau, France
Instructor: Michelle EunYoung Song
Cost: 1595€ to 2695€ for accommodation + 450€ tuition fee
Sponsor: Atelier Clos Mirabel
Website, email, +33.6.79.59.04.91

We explore the dramatic landscape of Doolin, County Clare, Ireland and translate its landscape, energy and lore into visual artwork. Our time together will be a balance between group excursions, individual exploration, and creation coupled with sharing and diving deeper into technique. We will establish a shared studio space as a center of operation as artists of any level work together in their preferred Media. Included in the retreat are 4 art workshops with Martin Bridge; field trips; 2 meals/day; housing and publication in an anthology of creativity (subject to vetting)—join us for this retreat of like-minded individuals connecting in various ways to the land in this very special place.
 
Location: Doolin, Ireland
Instructor: Martin Bridge
Cost: $1500-$2500 depending on accommodations
Sponsor: NatureCulture, and The Milk House
Website, email, 413-475-0650

Join me for one week of sketching with watercolor in beautiful Provence! Drawing while traveling is the best way to experience and remember a new place. Traveling is also a perfect opportunity to learn or hone your drawing skills. When we see new sights everything strikes us as unusual, memorable and inspiring. We have a natural desire to admire new vistas, taste new flavors, inhale unusual aromas and record these sensations through taking photos, but also through drawing and writing. For me, drawing while traveling is instinctual, and I am eager to share my passion to fully immerse yourself in a new place through the practice of travel sketching.
 
Location: Provence, France
Instructor: Rita Sabler
Cost: $3,940 before Nov 30th
Sponsor: French Escapade
Website, email, 510-483-5713

During this week of Botanical Sketching and Painting in the French Pyrénées with Lara Call Gastinger we will be observing, drawing and painting the local flora of Atelier Clos Mirabel. We will go through the process of how to create a botanical painting, starting with sketching and learning the important characteristics of plants. We will seek botanical inspiration from the acreage of Atelier Clos Mirabel and with a trip to the blooming meadows of the Pyrénées. After the first day of sketching, we will focus on using watercolours to capture the colours and textures of the plants. In the end, we will work on composition and how to create a finished botanical painting. All levels are welcome.
 
Location: Pau, France
Instructor: Lara Call Gastinger
Cost: 1595€ to 2695€ for accommodation + 450€ tuition fee
Sponsor: Atelier Clos Mirabel
Website, email, +33.6.79.59.04.91

Join Catherine Watters for one week of drawing and painting the incredibly diverse flora of Clos Mirabel, using watercolours and/or coloured pencils to capture the colours and textures of the plants. Discover the fascinating world of Botanical Art, starting with a walk around the magnificent property to choose your subject. A variety of plants will be in bloom including Roses, Hydrangeas, Iris, Lupin, Lilies and numerous fruits and vegetables growing in the Orchard. Catherine will introduce her 10 stages to successfully illustrate a subject. You will carefully observe, measure and draw your subject focusing on form, light and texture. All levels of experience are welcome.
 
Location: Pau, France
Instructor: Catherine Watters
Cost: 1595€ to 2695€ for accommodation + 450€ tuition fee
Sponsor: Atelier Clos Mirabel
Website, email, +33.6.79.59.04.91

Experience the beauty of South West France through the lens of Urban Sketching! Immerse yourself in the playful world of mixed media landscapes guided by Sketchbook artist Jenny Adam. This dynamic workshop with Jenny Adam offers a harmonious blend of techniques, allowing you to simplify nature’s complexity while infusing your artwork with texture, color, and emotion. We will work on location, discovering the landscapes and villages, but also make time for exploring art in the comfort of the atelier. Course Highlights include: Playful Drawing Techniques, Understanding Media Properties, and Exploratory Exercises.
 
Location: Pau, France
Instructor: Jenny Adam
Cost: 1595€ to 2695€ for accommodation + 320€ tuition fee
Sponsor: Atelier Clos Mirabel
Website, email, +33.6.79.59.04.91

Create your own original artwork and discover a wonderful area of France. To create a believable vision of magic one needs to learn the visual tricks of a magician. Lauren combines 19th century style fairy paintings with naturalistic/botanical watercolors in her own illustrated children’s books such as in her retelling of Thumbelina and her book Fairy Wings. Students will learn the nuts and bolts of book illustration beginning with the layout of a picture book, utilizing compositional tools including the golden ratio, color, value, atmospheric perspective and emotional compositions. We will explore creating believable characters and putting them into naturalistic scenes by understanding how to combine varied references and understanding simplified methods of perspective, anatomical proportions, and consistent light and shadow.
 
Location: Pau, France
Instructor: Lauren A. Mills
Cost: 1595€ to 2695€ for accommodation + $500 tuition fee
Sponsor: Atelier Clos Mirabel
Website, email, +33.6.79.59.04.91

Study with Jarnie Godwin at Atelier Clos Mirabel during a 5-day botanical art workshop in the French Pyrenees ~ South West France. Enjoy wonderful surroundings, delightful accommodation and delicious meals. Jarnie Godwin will guide you into the ethereal mysteries of the fading bloom. As blooms begin to fade you will learn how to capture these intimate, fragile and fleeting moments of decay. Using a range of watercolour techniques, Jarnie will show you how to create the unique acute textures and colour transitions of decay and fading colour. You will learn more about the unique form and detail of fading flowers, and will gain confidence in using and manipulating watercolour to convey an intimate moment in time.
 
Location: Pau, France
Instructor: Jarnie Godwin
Cost: 1595€ to 2695€ for accommodation + £400 tuition fee
Sponsor: Atelier Clos Mirabel
Website, email, +33.6.79.59.04.91

Join Laura Silburn at Atelier Clos Mirabel for a 5-day botanical art workshop in the French Pyrenees ~ South West France. Enjoy wonderful surroundings, accommodation and delicious meals. Explore the botanical delights of this flora-rich part of the world. Laura will help you examine a chosen plant or vegetable through careful observation and sketchbook work. You will then compose an image that reflects its natural character whilst observing botanical truth. You will be guided on how to take your drawings through to a completed botanical watercolour and shown techniques for dry-brush finishing. Laura has work at Kew Gardens, The Hunt Institute, the Florilegium of the Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney, and the Eden Project Cornwall.
 
Location: Pau, France
Instructor: Laura Silburn
Cost: 1595€ to 2695€ for accommodation + tuition fee
Sponsor: Atelier Clos Mirabel
Website, email, +33.6.79.59.04.91

Join Julia Trickey at Atelier Clos Mirabel for a week-long botanical art workshop in the French Pyrenees ~ South West France. Enjoy wonderful surroundings, delightful accommodation and delicious meals. Using fruit and vegetables, flowers and leaves from the gardens and grounds of Atelier Clos Mirabel, we will explore how to make less-than-perfect botanical specimens centre stage. We will start by experimenting with wet-in-wet techniques to create initial form and merging colours, before considering other techniques used to deepen colours and add details. There will also be opportunity to work larger than life or with black backgrounds. Teaching by Julia Trickey will be delivered via live demonstrations, slide presentations and lots of individual support.
 
Location: Pau, France
Instructor: Julia Trickey
Cost: 1595€ to 2695€ for accommodation + £400 tuition fee
Sponsor: Atelier Clos Mirabel
Website, email, +33.6.79.59.04.91