WORKSHOP DETAILS
TUSCANY 2008
The 2008 Tuscany Workshop combines the serenity of rural Italy together with the sheer beauty of one of Tuscany's little known hill towns to produce one of our most exciting workshop offerings yet. This workshop includes a six night stay in the hills near the medieval town of San Gimignano and an additional six nights in Certaldo Alto (the old medieval city accessed by cable car, and the home of Giovanni Boccaccio) our Tuscan workshop will again offer the Artist and/or the Art-Lover another one of the experiences rich in art, culture and fine cuisine for which we have become noted.
Day trips to Siena, San Gimignano, Volterra, the Chianti Hills, and Florence will provide us with visual feasts of Italy's finest art and architecture. Our Summer Workshop in Tuscany will offer mini workshops in traditional Renaissance mediums: egg tempera, watercolor, & silverpoint! This intensive painting-instruction experience includes painting on location and in studio with lectures, demonstrations, critiques and scheduled painting time. If you prefer to work in an alternate medium we will also instruct you in the painting/drawing medium of your choice. This workshop offers a unique opportunity to work in Tuscany's most breath taking landscape while studying many of Italy's great Renaissance art treasures.
FOR THE ARTIST
Our
Tuscany Workshop will be offered from May 25th to June 6, 2008. This workshop
is multifaceted and is open to working artists at any level from beginning
to professional. The instructional sessions will include lectures and
demonstrations in watercolor, silverpoint drawing, egg tempera, color
mixing, and composition. Jeremiah Patterson will conduct lectures and
demonstrations in watercolor. Each participant will be provided with a
silverpoint and shown the methods necessary to achieve the beauty of this
delicate medium. Fred Wessel will lecture on and demonstrate classical
methods of egg tempera painting and gilding. Jeremiah will lead en plein
air painting excursions to the many beautiful views easily available to
us from our two base locations. Fred and Jeremiah will be available for
personal critiques.
FOR THE ARTIST AND/OR ART LOVER
Our 'Art-lovers', also enjoy many features of the workshop in the itinerary designed for our artist participants. In addition, many scheduled events have been put in the itinerary with our 'Art-lovers' in mind. 'Art-lovers' in the past have commented on the wonderful educational vacations they have experienced on our workshops in Italy.
Our
culinary experiences will be as varied as our country-hill town settings.
Typical menus at the Fattoria Vagli can consist of Tuscan Ribolita
(the beloved twice cooked soup of Firenze) 
followed
by Cinghale ai Cacciatori "(wild boar stew)"..true Italian country
cooking! Click the sunflower to see other delights that Mamma Emilia prepares
at the fattoria!
Our food changes to high Italian cuisine at the Osteria del Vicario in Certaldo Alto with wonderful meals prepared by a truly great chef who has earned a two fork rating in the prestigious Michelin Red Guide.
The
residences in Certaldo and our country 'Fattoria' will allow the artist
to attend to lectures, demonstrations, etc. and allow for ample painting
time. Scheduled day trips from both locations can either be painting/drawing
trips or touring experiences. The Fattoria Vagli has its own private
pool which will allow us the luxury of a refreshing swim. Since our
final six nights are in 
residence
in Certaldo, departure from the workshop itinerary is always possible.
Certaldo is directly on a rail line with hourly trains to Florence, Siena
and Pisa. Each of these art-rich cities is a pleasant hour train ride
away from our residence. Certaldo is also located in the Chianti region
with the esteemed estates of Chianti Classico and Chainti Putto very nearby.
For
the artist and/or art lover, Certaldo itself is a former Etruscan, Roman
and Medieval city with many things to see and experience. The art, food
and wine of Tuscany experienced during the workshop, enjoyed within the
context of the history and culture of Italy will be of interest to both
artists and 'Art-lovers'. From our base lodgings we will take a series
of afternoon and day trips to several Tuscan jewels, the hill
towns of San Gimignano & Volterra, the beautiful
Chianti Classico vineyard region, and the cities of Siena
and Florence! Our trips will provide drives
through some of Tuscany's most beautiful landscape. Our first afternoon
trip brings us to San Gimignano, introducing our group to the flavor
of Ancient Tuscany in this charming hill town of medieval towers.
While there we will visit its magnificently frescoed cathedral (Collegiata)
including a spectacular chapel frescoed by Ghirlandaio, and also a wonderful
cycle of frescoes by Benozzo Gozzoli. Another afternoon trip will take
us to Volterra, a true Etruscan town (hosting one of the best Etruscan
Museums) now known for its beautiful alabaster carvings. This is also
a great spot to sketch or paint. We will spend another afternoon driving
through the beautiful landscape of the Chianti Classico area stopping
for a tasting and visit to a select vineyard. On the day we transfer from
the fattoria to Certaldo Alto, we will make a full day stop in the wonderful
Tuscan city of Siena. During the Renaissance, Siena was an enemy and rival
of the city of Florence, still evident by the remnants of ramparts that
surround the old city center. Siena's greatest period of prosperity occurred
during the 13th and 14th centuries, a time that saw the rise of the great
masters Duccio, Simone Martini, Nicola Pisano, and Pietro & Ambrogio
Lorenzetti among others.
A high point of the trip, will certainly be for many, our day trip to Italy's Renaissance City, Florence (Firenze). We will visit the great Renaissance collection at the Uffizi Gallery, frescoes by Ghirlandaio and Massaccio in Santa Maria Novella, Ghiberti’s famous Gates of Paradise and the nearby Duomo, and other examples of Florence’s public art.
