This exclusive seven-day artists retreat is designed to open your mind and your senses, and will assist you in moving forward with fresh new creative energy in your art. Inspiration and Expression are the keys. Allow yourself to be free! We will give you the tools, support and space to make that happen. Designed for all levels of artists, it will help you move your artwork forward and deepen your creative self-expression. All-inclusive, quality accommodations, outstanding cuisine, art materials, sightseeing, and instruction. Small classes for personal attention with the insightful guidance. Located in Quillan, France, on the Aude river one hour south of Carcassonne and a little over an hour west of Perpignan. Discounts for early booking.
 
Location: Quillan, France
Instructor: Mike Snow
Cost: € 2,295
Sponsor: Mike Snow
Website, email, +33678852282

La Maison de Beaumont’s multi-disciplinary artist residency was created with the goal of offering a beautiful space for musicians, scholars, writers, painters and other artists who seek a quiet place to work undisturbed on their art. The scenery and beauty of the region, as well as the history and comfort of the house, provide an ideal setting to focus on creative work. The Residency provides: • Up to two months in residence at La Maison de Beaumont • A fully equipped private apartment with kitchen & bath • Access to a multi-use space that can serve as an artist studio or a performance and exhibition space • A Common Terrace for relaxation, networking with other residents, meditation, etc.
 
Location: Beaumont-de-Pertuis, France
Cost: 45 Euros to apply
Sponsor: La Maison de Beaumont
Website, email

This Travel Journaling workshop in Provence has been designed with the Absolute Beginner in mind. Creating a watercolor journal when you are traveling is the complete opposite of how many of us travel these days: taking photos after photos with our phones. Watercolor Travel Journaling gives us a chance to slow down, to sketch scenes around us, to bring out our paints and add some color to our travel journals. Provence is the artist's dream destination. During the days, we will explore Luberon, and its spectacular countryside of vineyards and orchards, fascinating "perched" hill-top villages, outstanding natural produce and the light of Van Gogh and Cezanne. You will see why artists of all calibers are drawn to this alluring area.
 
Location: Bonnieux, Provence, France
Instructor: Lo Peyron Mathews
Cost: $3,590
Sponsor: Alpine Creative Tours
Website, email, 970-846-9000

Join David on a Watercolor Journey, in the beautiful Provence. You will be learning the most valuable watercolor concepts and techniques. This workshop will save you countless hours of trial & error by demonstrating approaches in an easily understood manner that will open new doors of discovery and creativity. David will discuss outdoor equipment options, considerations when choosing a composition, value study options to help prepare for the painting process, and provide numerous demonstrations and individual attention. Regardless of your level of experience, you’re almost guaranteed to leave with a handsome work of art, and the skills, concepts, and confidence to take your paintings to a higher level.
 
Location: Provence, France
Instructor: David R. Smith
Cost: $3,790 before Nov 30th
Sponsor: French Escapade
Website, email, 510-483-5713

Join us in 2024, as Kathleen Lanzoni takes a group of watercolor painters on this trip to Provence. We will be painting the fascinating towns and beautiful scenery. You will receive personal painting instruction each day. Whether you are a novice or experienced painter, this trip will be fun and an educational experience for all! We will stay in Bonnieux, and we will visit many of the scenic towns in the Luberon area: Roussillon, Lourmarin, l’Isle sur la Sorgue, and Gordes. Spectacular countryside of vineyards and orchards, fascinating “perched” hill-top villages, outstanding natural produce and the light of Van Gogh and Cezanne. You will soon see why we love this area and are excited to take groups to enjoy Provence.
 
Location: Bonnieux, Provence, France
Instructor: Kathleen Lanzoni
Cost: $3,790
Sponsor: Alpine Creative Tours
Website, email, 970-846-9000

Come and paint in beautiful Provence with Carol Carter. Carol will share her unique watercolor technique, painting from background to foreground, using dynamic and inventive color. Each day in the studio, Carol will share her watercolor techniques while teaching site specific tutorials. The workshop will provide templates, reference photos and materials information. Painting workshop from 9 am to noon followed by conclusion and small critique till about 1pm. In the afternoon, we will visit some villages in Provence that will be the topic of our next day painting: time for photography and sketching. Relax, enjoy, learn a new watercolor technique or two among the camaraderie of other artists while savoring gourmet food and French wines.
 
Location: Provence, France
Instructor: Carol Carter
Cost: $3,790 before Nov 30th
Sponsor: French Escapade
Website, email, 510-483-5713

Let’s explore Costa Brava with a sketchbook! Spending time observing a scene while travelling creates rich memories. When you spend time sketching the scene, those memories become indelible, and the studies you create are so much more precious than the usual travel snaps we see. We can record the fresh white buildings, the ancient stone castle, the gardens, the fabulous cliffs, the beach, all the while creating a rich and vivid record in our sketchbooks. Working from life, you’ll learn how to mix accurate colours, and how to work with a limited palette to simplify the painting process. You’ll discover how to sketch and paint whatever you come across and how to record them all in pencil, pen and watercolour.
 
Location: Haute-Savoie, France
Instructor: Jane Blundell
Cost: $3,790 before Nov 30th
Sponsor: French Escapade
Website, email, 510-483-5713

Join acclaimed watercolorist and instructor, Margie Samuels, for a magical week painting in the breathtaking French Alps! Each morning will start with a brief review of the watercolor skills that you will be using in that day’s plein air landscape. These lessons, focusing on various techniques, will take your watercolor painting to the next level. Each day participants will be given a “painting challenge,” where you can carry these new skills into the plein air landscape that you are creating. With a maximum size of just 15 students, there will be plenty of opportunity for individual instruction. Each location will include an on-site demonstration by Margie where you will get to see the steps it takes to bring your painting to life.
 
Location: Haute-Savoie, France
Instructor: Margie Samuels
Cost: $3,790 before Nov 30th
Sponsor: French Escapade
Website, email, 510-483-5713

There’s a bookshelf in my studio that holds more than 30 travel sketchbooks. Every time I browse through them, memories of a specific place come flooding back — and not just the sights. Sounds, scents and flavours, snippets of conversations with a farmer, the taste of my morning coffee and brioche — it’s all still there, fresh in my mind, the moment I crack open a sketchbook. That’s what I love best about travel sketching. How the act of putting pencil and paint to paper enriches the total experience, and preserves it forever. Come sketch with me in Provence, where we’ll capture this historic region’s beauty and character in our sketchbooks.
 
Location: Provence, France
Instructor: Shari Blaukopf
Cost: $3,790 before Nov 30th
Sponsor: French Escapade
Website, email, 510-483-5713

There’s a bookshelf in my studio that holds more than 30 travel sketchbooks. Every time I browse through them, memories of a specific place come flooding back — and not just the sights. Sounds, scents and flavours, snippets of conversations with a farmer, the taste of my morning coffee and brioche — it’s all still there, fresh in my mind, the moment I crack open a sketchbook. That’s what I love best about travel sketching. How the act of putting pencil and paint to paper enriches the total experience, and preserves it forever. Come sketch with me in Provence, where we’ll capture this historic region’s beauty and character in our sketchbooks.
 
Location: Provence, France
Instructor: Shari Blaukopf
Cost: $3,790 before Nov 30th
Sponsor: French Escapade
Website, email, 510-483-5713

A unique art workshop/art tour open to artists of all levels and media (oils, acrylics, watercolors, etc.). Seven days of plein-air painting, art history/theory lectures, and gastronomy in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence followed by four days visiting Barcelona’s top art sites and enjoying Catalan cuisine. The price of CAD 4475 per person (around US$ 3350) includes instruction,11-night double accommodation, 11 breakfasts, 6 healthy lunches, 6 gourmet dinners including wine, transportation from the Manosque train station to our lodge, transportation to all painting sites, TGV train ticket Avignon-Barcelona, transportation and entrance fees to all sites on schedule (Cézanne’s studio, La Sagrada Familia, Picasso Museum, Miró Museum, etc.). Limited single rooms for a supplement of CAD 850 around US$ 650.
 
Location: Alpes de Haute-Provence, France
Instructor: Prof. Yves M. Larocque
Cost: US$ 3350
Sponsor: Walk the Arts
Website, email, 800-611-4789

Join Cindy Briggs and Theresa Goesling in Giverny and have a creative life experience. You’ll enjoy inspiring locations such as Monet’s garden, daily painting demonstrations, personalized instruction, and encouraging support from Cindy and Theresa. We show you how to simplify and design your subject, draw confidently, jazz up your colors, paint with serendipity and experiment with new techniques. Create colorful paintings en Plein Air with an emphasis on celebrating your own unique point of view .
 
Location: Watercolor Painting Workshop, France
Instructor: Cindy Briggs & Theresa Goesling
Cost: $3,790 before Jan 31st
Sponsor: French Escapade
Website, email, 510-483-5713

The wonderful views and landscapes of the French Alps seem to be just made for watercolor. All the incredible villages, lakes and mountains are just begging to be caught on the tip of your brush. Moving from place to place, we will find the best locations to create vibrant and sunny watercolors. Every day will be a discovery for you—and a new opportunity for painting in watercolor. In addition to traditional watercolor techniques, I will introduce you to my personal methods and secrets. Join us for relaxation and enjoyment of the French Alps with a very rich and informative workshop in the open air.
 
Location: Haute-Savoie, France
Instructor: Michael Solovyev
Cost: $3,790 before Nov 30th
Sponsor: French Escapade
Website, email, 510-483-5713

Enveloped by the beauty of France, you will be guided in creating impressionistic watercolor sketches, learning techniques of painting with expression, and incorporating the principles and elements of art into your work. Each day, we will be focusing on a particular subject(s) or technique that will be applicable for that day’s destination. Learn to create watercolor sketches in a loose, splashy manner, quickly capturing the vibrant, lush countryside of Provence. This workshop is focused on immersing oneself within the country, absorbing the sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and then translating those experiences into sketches. Several studies and paintings will be done every day, including intuitive warm-up exercises and technique exploration. Group and one-on-one teaching will be provided daily.
 
Location: Fontaine de Vaucluse, France
Instructor: Sarah Hansen
Cost: $3,790 before Jan 31st
Sponsor: French Escapade
Website, email, 510-483-5713

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: $3,790 before Jan 31st
Sponsor: French Escapade
Website, email, 510-483-5713

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: $3,790 before Jan 31st
Sponsor: French Escapade
Website, email, 510-483-5713