“To paint... to travel... to combine the two... is to celebrate life…” Jack R. Brouwer

I love to travel and I do not pack light!  I fill every available corner of my luggage with painting supplies because nothing gives me more pleasure than painting in inspiring locations.

Occasionally I experience a part of the world that is so full of inspiration that I feel compelled to create an art retreat experience.  They don’t happen every year, but when they do, they are next level SPECIAL. 

Let me tell you about a beautiful retreat I hosted in a small town in the South of France called Cagnes sur Mer. This small medieval village is about 1km inland from the French Riviera Coastline and about 10 minutes drive from Nice.

Renoir lived and painted here at the end of his life and you can still visit his beautiful home and studio. Many other visiting artists have lived and worked in this village, such as Modigliani, which is why it became nicknamed in France as the “Montmartre of the Riviera”.

I know these things, because I am a pretty big art history nerd (I studied and taught art history at the University of Melbourne). And there is nothing that excites me more than telling the tales of artists in the lands where their myths unfolded.

For three weeks in 2018 my own artist fantasy unfolded as stayed in this medieval hilltop village and painted a collection of ‘Jardin Riviera’ inspired by the cascading autumn village gardens. But it was too good to just keep this fantasy all to myself, so for one week. I hosted a DIVINE residential art retreat for 14 guests from around the globe.

On the first day, after our gorgeous French Breakfast made by our in-house chef, we went and visited the art store that Picasso and Matisse used to buy their art supplies from when in Nice and stocked up on ours. The owner, Franco Jr.(it was his grandfather who ran the store back in those days) regaled me with stories, such as the time his grandfather loaned money to Bonnard when he was broke during World War II.

Our mornings were spent visiting some of the finest museums in the South of France. And after a lazy lunch in whatever Riviera location we happened to find ourselves, we travelled back to the Villa and I taught a painting workshop. We then whiled away our afternoon in the courtyard of our medieval villa painting.

In the evenings we either strolled out to one of our many lovely local restaurants for a meal, or dined in at the villa and painted the night away.

This retreat, was in every way, the culmination of an artist fantasy come to life. These are the kinds of events that I like to create.  I don’t host an international art retreat every year, but when I do, I make them an experience to remember.

So If you’d like to hear about it when we plan our next one, please sign up to the list below to receive early notification.

The Villa

While we are unable to host another retreat in this gorgeous Villa which has sold to private owners, you can get a feel for the quality and character we strive to find in our retreat venues.

The Museums

During our week in Cagnes sur Mer we conducted our own private tours of many of the wonderful Museums and sites of artistic interest that pepper the French Riviera and Alpes Maritimes.  As I’m a keen art historian, I love to bring alive the work of these great painters in the towns in which many of them lived and work. Some of these included:

• Musee Renoir (Home and Studio in Cagnes sur mer)

• Musee Bonnard (Le Cannet)

• Musee Matisse (Nice)

• Musee Picasso (Antibes)

• Musee Chagall (Nice)

• the Fondation Maeght (St Paul de Vence)

The Art Classes

Wherever in the world my Retreat is occurring, you can be sure of a full, immersive art experience. During the relaxed but comprehensive classes that take place over the space of a week, you will be sure to leave with a wealth of new techniques to try out in your art practice.

During our French Riviera Retreat, the focus was colour, since some of the greatest colourists of western modern art lived and worked in this area. 

The Villages and Restaurants

My Retreats are a feast for ALL the senses.  While I spend a lot of time seeking out the picturesque for our eyes, I also aim to inspire the senses of smell and taste in choosing to dine in some really beautiful restaurants.  

If this kind of art retreat inspires the travelling artist in you, then be sure to join our art retreat list to hear when the next event happens.