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Space limited!
 Enroll early to ensure your participation!

A Sense of Place

in Tuscany

Travel Journaling under the Tuscan sun!

with Artist/Instructor

Alison Watt

May 28-June 4, 2025  Wed-Wed

Cortona, Italy


Alison Watt
Alison Watt
Magical Cortona
Magical Cortona
View Cortona photo gallery - click here

About this workshop...

Join me for a week of joyful exploration of Place, in the

beautiful city of Cortona. Sitting in ancient squares, by

fountains, or in cafes, I’ll show you some simple ways to

capture buildings. In markets we’ll talk about how to include

figures in your sketches. Overlooking vistas of vineyards and

far off hills, we’ll explore how to simplify the scene to focus on

important elements and create depth.

Drawing and painting on loose pages rather than in a

watercolour journal, allows us to loosen up and have fun with

experimental techniques and a variety of media.

We’ll work with watercolour, pen, ink, marker, on different

papers, to create images, which we will curate into a

concertina book.

The Concertina books you make with these images will be

your personal art book of your Cortona experience.




 

Picture Yourself...

among the sights and sounds of beautiful and romantic Tuscany: olive groves, vineyards, centuries-old buildings, winding streets, texture and vibrant sunlight.

Feel Yourself...

in the warm ambiance of Cortona, overlooking Lake Trasimeno and the Val di Chiana, originally fortified by the Umbrians, claimed by the Etruscans, touched by the Renaissance, almost unchanged for centuries, one of Tuscany's jewels.

Experience...

the joy of sketchibg and painting in a relaxed and inspiring atmosphere with the camaraderie of a small group of enthusiastic Artists.

Enjoy...

great Italian food, delightful wines, new friends, breath-taking vistas, history and the hospitality of the people of Cortona.


 
Go to Enrollment page

Cortona Vineyards
Cortona Vineyards

All-inclusive tuition, meals & accommodations start at

US $3,850.00pp double occupancy!

US$3,990.00pp single occupancy!


All-inclusive* workshop includes:
Escorted group travel Florence
to Cortona May 28, 2025****

Instruction on location
Seven nights accommodations
in historic Cortona** (Private room & bath)

Local Etruscan Museum & Museo Diocesano
All meals***
(Italian breakfast, lunch and dinner)
Daily wine tasting opportunities

Day trip to Pienza & Montepulciano
Day trip to Siena
A farewell wine tasting dinner
Escorted group travel Cortona
to Florence June 4, 2025****

**Included with "Hotel" private room plans only. See details.

***Included with "Group Meal Plan" only. Italian breakfsat simply includes coffees, brioche, toast, milk, juices, cheese.  
****Specific departure time from Florence airport May 28, 2025 only at 12:00noon
****Specific departure time from Cortona to Florence airport June 4, 2025 only at 8:00am
*All-inclusive plans are "Hotel" only.
Air travel and ground transportation to/from Cortona is not included and is the responsibility of each participant

Go to Enrollment page


Meet Alison Watt...

Alison Watt is a painter and writer who lives on Vancouver
Island. In her acrylic and mixed media landscapes she strives
for complex surface and luminous colour. She has been
teaching for 25 years, recently online, offering courses in
acrylic and mixed media, as well as water media, and
illustrated journalling.

In illustrated journals she strives to capture a sense of place.
Her book “The Last Island, a Naturalists Sojourn on Triangle
Island” is illustrated with watercolours of the birds, tide pools,
and towering cliffs of a remote island off the west coast of
Canada.

Her journal courses bring this spirit of exploration and wonder
to the process of capturing any place, whether it be the
familiar paths of home or the thrilling vistas of travel.

About Cortona...

Cortona is one of the true jewels of the Tuscan “hill towns.”    Cortona, which is often called the “City of Art,” has its origin as an Etruscan city that pre-dates Roman times with sections of its walls dating back some 2500 years.  As is typical of Tuscan hill-towns, Cortona is a walled city that, for purposes of defense, was built atop a prominent geographical point. The stone buildings and streets not only have the romance, style, and charm that are particular to Tuscany, but also speak of the lives and times Cortona has witnessed. An encounter with Cortona is an encounter with music & art, with history and with spirituality. Getting to know this timeless city is a real rediscovery of our past. Cortona offers testimony to its history as well as an enchanting view of the landscape enclosed by Lake Trasimeno and the Apennine mountains

Itinerary

Wednesday  May 28  – Arrival in Cortona

-12:00 noon – Escorted group travel Florence airport to Cortona

-Arrival and Check-in in Cortona

-Free afternoon to shop, rest, explore! Museums are open and tickets provided.
-6:00p Welcome to Cortona wine and chocolate tasting at La Saletta.

-7:00p Evening dinner in Cortona

   

Thursday  May 29 - Cortona

-9:00a-12:30p Morning Session

-12:30-2:00p Lite Lunch TBA

-2:00-5:00p Afternoon Session

-6:00p Wine/aperitifs

-7:00p Evening dinner in Cortona

 

Friday  May 30  - Siena

-9:00a Depart Cortona for day trip to Siena

-12:30 Lite Lunch
-4:30p Depart to Cortona

-6:30p Wine/aperitifs

-7:00p Evening dinner in Cortona

  

Saturday  May 31 - Cortona

-9:00a-12:30p Morning Session

-12:30-2:00p Lite Lunch TBA

-2:00-5:00p Afternoon Session

-6:00p Wine/aperitifs

-7:00p Evening dinner in Cortona


 Sunday  June 1  - Cortona

-9:00a-12:30p Morning Session

-12:30-2:00p Lite Lunch TBA

-2:00-5:00p Afternoon Session

-6:00p Wine/aperitifs

-7:00p Evening dinner in Cortona

 

Monday  June 2 -  Pienza and Montepulciano

-8:45a Dat trip to Pienza and Montepulciano

-Morning  session
-12:30-2:00p Lite Lunch 
-Afternoon Session

-4:30p Depart to Cortona

-6:30p Wine/aperitifs

-7:00p Evening dinner in Cortona

 

Tuesday  June 3 - Cortona

-9:00a-12:30p Morning Session

-12:30-2:00p  Lite Lunch
-FREE AFTERNOON to explore, shop, relax, or pack!
-7:00p Farewell Wine Tasting Dinner in Cortona 

 

Wednesday  June 4 – Departure   

-Morning Check-out

-8:00a departure from Cortona with escorted return to Florence airport.

 

Note: Toscana Americana reserves the right to alter this itinerary. All times are approximate.
Note: Transfers are provided only for programmed meals and activities away from the hotel.
Note: All guests are responsible for handling their own luggage/baggage....we suggest to pack light.
Note: No refunds are given for any unused aspects of the itinerary or for any activities outside the above itinerary.

Note: Airfares not included

Note: Guests are responsible for all personal hotel service charges


Siena Piazza del Campo
Siena Piazza del Campo

Go to Enrollment page

Meet your host in Tuscany...Patrick Mahoney

Patrick Mahoney has called Cortona, Italy home since 2001! Patrick shares his very personal and intimate knowledge of Cortona's people, history, art, culture and food & wine to Toscana Americana Workshops experience. With his love of travel and after studying and working for many years in the Art & Entertainment industry Patrick's sensativity creates and shapes, along with a stable of wonderfully talented instructors, meaaningful, creative and memorale experiences in the Arts. A testament to the quality of the Toscana Americana Workshops experience is the large number of participants who return to enrich their lives while participating in creative programs...not only in Cortona, but also the Amalfi Coast, the Cinque Terre, Venice, Portofino, as well as Santorini, Greece and Austria, and the American Southwest!!

 

Frequently Asked Questions and info

Covid-19 Protocols and Safety Measures (No restrictions as of July 19, 2023)
To respect our local host communities/countries and to ensure the safety and health of our guests and participants we follow the safety measures and protocols in place by our host communities/countries at the time of any given workshop or program or tour. These measures and protocols may vary and or change from time to time as well as during the course of any given workshop or program or tour and we will adapt to and abide by official safety measures and protocols. All of our guests and participants, without exception, are expected to adapt to and abide by official safety measures and protocols during any given workshop or program or tour in which they are participating. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) such as face masks are the responsibility of each guest or participant. Health documents such as proof of vaccination or inoculation or other required by a host country, such as Italy for example, are the sole responsibility of each guest or participant. We strongly suggest all such documents are carried on-person at all times during any given workshop or program or tour in which they are participating.

Email Toscana Americana Workshops for more info

Frequently Asked Questions and info
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