Travelling with meaning; our painting workshops

Our painting workshops, great art summer camp?

We have read that more and more travellers from the developed world are looking for meaningful travels. Increasingly, we are aiming for journeys that allow us to learn something new, to deepen our culture, to enhance our lives.  Purpose, inspiration and self-discovery are now vital elements in our traveling choices.  Probably, this is why our quality painting workshops offered since 1997, have become more and more popular. During the last years we have realized that our art experiences are kind of fantastic art summer camps for adults. Sort of Outward Bound experiences, but fostering creativity and cultural immersion. This has also been expressed by many of our past participants, both artists and non-artists.

One of our former participants wrote us about the “totality of the experience embracing rigour”. It is true because Studio Italia, as all our painting workshops, offers an exciting and tight schedule that allows you to return home with the deep and rewarding feeling of having accomplished something.  “In depth learning about art, art history and art theory” wrote another participant. Also true because we are aware that everything can now be found on the Web (read our post), therefore, we cannot simply rehash first-hand information. Yes, we do help everyone to reach their desired colors and shapes, but through other much more meaningful ways.

At Walk the Arts we aim to surpass easily found knowledge on YouTube such as how “to mix your greens”, even “how to paint an Italian landscape”; and if you can learn the latter in a video, why attending a painting workshop in Tuscany?  This reality has encouraged us to become a conduit of art knowledge, not a mere repeater of it.  The money you spend during an art workshop has to be equal (if not more) to the received service : “under-priced” wrote someone else. We want you to return home with a sense of well-being.

The building of catwalks between distant art ideas is extremely important to us. These relationships are being constructed through “interaction”, “philosophical views”, “harmony”, “great conversation over candlelit dinners”, “gourmet meals”,  as written by some of our emerging artists.

Yes, indeed Studio Italia, Atelier Provence and Studio Colombia are great art summer camps for adults since you will find:  in-depth art instruction and knowledge, daily expeditions (not on rivers, but in museums and historical cities), campfires (but around the fireplace with red wine),marshmallow roasting (in reality wine and cheese tastings), physical activity (painting in front of your easel, walking in beautiful cities, climbing in the van and the Uffizi staircases in Florence, etc.), and great huge meals (not with pizza and Kool-Aid but with gourmet cuisine and wine) …and more important, new lifelong friendships and many paintings worthy to be hung on prominent walls of your house.

We aim to offer our participants a fulfilling art experience for the two following reasons: first, we believe that creativity is a transformative force that can work wonders in our lives. Second, we believe that the democratisation of art can lead to the betterment of our societies. This is our mission!