Saturday 26 September 2015

A special thanks

We were very lucky to have great helpers in this event and we'd like to thank them.

Chiara Perondi

Among the best was our brilliant housekeeper Chiara Perondi, without whom we would have been lost. She anticipated our every need and was a real part of the art family during the week. If you would like to contact Chiara for your private events you can find her on facebook at this Link.

We were also blessed with fantastic cooks. We referred to them as our Italian Mamas. No fuss. Just beautiful food and great fun.

Cooking with Carlotta.


You can contact Carlotta through her website or her facebook page.

www.cookingwithcarlotta.com
https://www.facebook.com/cookingwithcarlottacom-530554536997385/timeline/

Final images from September 2015

So September 2015 has passed. There is a gentle sense of regret but some great times were had and new friends made. They all deserve a great thanks for their company and the marvelous way that everyone got on together. Their observations and comments have given us a sense of the future path for Tuscany Plein Air.

More on that later.

In the meantime we'd like to thank everyone who came along and traveled so far to take part in the workshop. It seems to have been a transformative experience for everyone, including the seasoned painters among us. There were many surprises in fact.

Here are some final photos and some images from the show and tell event of paintings and studies produced during the week.
Watercolor studies from the talented Betty Kirschenman.


Landscape study from Pat Mahony.



Very quick color studies in oil on paper. The idea here is to produce simplified landscape descriptions with an emphasis on color values rather than shapes or story.

It shouldn't take more than a few minutes to do each and this was a formative study in the first few days before we began painting.




Value studies in black and white aid compositional skills.


Some beautiful advanced value studies of the landscape from Maria Levinge.









Maureen Hyde is a Florence based painter. She visited as a guest artist on our open day. Here she is painting with Val.

 Pat Mahony, our scholarship winner, presenting her works.

Tom J. Byrne explaining one of his landscape paintings.



We also enjoyed the company of non painting guests.
Non painting guests are people who respectfully want to spend time in the company of artists as they study. To soak up the creative ambiance and join in the discussions each evening. This could be a best friend, a partner or someone associated with the arts who doesn't actually paint themselves.

The combination produced some great conversations and insights.










Thanks to everyone who made this possible. 
We're already looking forward to planning events for 2016.

In the private gardens of The Corsini Villa.








Friday 18 September 2015

First Few days at the Villa

We've been painting at the villa for the last week and it's been quiet a pleasure as well as a great painting experience. The art guests have come from all over the world. Canada, the USA, Ireland and Australia and everyone is enjoying the experience as well as perfecting their art.

Guests have been very surprised by the quality of the experience. We're not blowing our own trumpet here, it's been the topic of conversation at many evening meals. Some of which have been in the villa and others in local restaurants. In the villa we owe thanks to our cooks and to the great assistance of Chiarra Perondi who has looked after the house every day while we've been painting.

We've visited the gardens of the Corsini Family as guests of Donna Georgiana Corsini who is also a painter. The original plan was to visit many different locations around Florence to paint but the fact is that everyone is so enamored by the location that no one wanted to leave, so we have mostly painted from the villa every day. It has amazing views and painting opportunities.

Here are a few photos from the last few days. We will be finishing up on Sunday. It's been a great experience so far and bodes well for future events.

Meeting for the first time in Florence before visiting Zecchis for art supplies. 
Our first evening at the villa. Eating on the terrace under the stars.
Our Australian artist, enjoying her visit to Florence.

Painting in the Corsini Gardens, Florence.

Choosing a view from the villa.

Explaining color mixing and values.

Very glad to have a watercolorist among us.

Color mapping a scene.

Our scholarship winner at work studying the landscape

In the Corsini Gardens

Wild tortoise wander all over the Corsini gardens. It's obviously a very old tradition.

Study of a statue in the Corsini Gardens.


A part of the panoramic view, every day.