Watercolor and Water-Based Media Printmaking in Italy

Dates: July 9th - July 19th, 2024

Location: La Romita School of Art, Umbria, Italy

Instructor: Frances Valesco

Watch Frances Valesco's artist profile here

Join us and explore the beauty of the Italian landscape using watercolor painting balanced with water-based media for printmaking.  We explore how the two techniques can relate to and enrich each other.  This workshop is open to seasoned artists and anyone new to painting and printmaking!

With fresh eyes, we will center each day on experiencing the environment of La Romita and nearby villages using plein-air painting and sketching or working in the studio.  Each day will begin with demonstrations of distinctive printing techniques or preparatory studies using non-toxic materials, such as watercolors, water-based pencils, gouache, and crayons.  We’ll experiment with these processes that make multiple or unique images possible, and they are exceptional idea-builders.  By the end of ten days, you will have a body of work that consists of a series of connected ideas.

Through field trips, we’ll be inspired by encounters with living history, the profound sense of Italian craftsmanship, and their care about materials.  We’ll visit Bevagna, the home of a living museum of papermaking (featured in the publication Hand Papermaking in 2002).  We’ll take a day trip to a nearby monastery to experience the beauty of medieval illuminated manuscripts.  Nearby towns include San Gemini, Narni, Todi, and Spoleto, where we will explore art in its original intended location, and you can sketch and paint plein-air.  A day trip to Perugia will be in the program.  We’ll visit various natural and historic sites, spending most of the day wandering, painting, and having lunch in a village.  You can return to La Romita to work at the printing press or paint in The Chapel Studio, which is open 24/7.  You’ll have the flexibility for early-morning and late-night creativity.  You can also spend the whole session working on your projects in the inspirational Chapel Studio or printmaking lab, with views of traditional Renaissance-style gardens.

What's included:
All ground transportation on the La Romita private bus, all accommodations, meals, 24/7 access to the studio and art instruction. Most basic art materials are included and an optional materials list will be provided. Price includes a single room. 

What's not included:
You may prefer to buy your own lunch from a cafe or trattoria on one or two of the longer full-day trips. Personal laundry is not included. And of course, if you leave the group to do your own thing, your expenses are your own. The price does not include airfare: contact us for a special group rate (with flexible arrival/ departure if you want to stay longer) through our travel agent, or meet us in Italy!

Please reach out to us at ccsf.extension@ccsf.edu if you qualify for any of the below discounts or would like to set up a payment plan:

• $200 discount each for double occupancy (must be traveling together)
• $200 discount for returning students to La Romita 
• If you would like to set up a payment plan of three separate, equal payments. 

About La Romita: For 50 years, La Romita School of Art has been bringing people to the Umbrian region of Central Italy to participate in its painting, culinary, and art workshops. Our art workshops are intimate, unique, and informed by our decades-long experience in the region and in art workshop organization. Whether you are painting or sketching, taking a photograph of a beautiful mountain lake or remote hill-town, drinking espresso in a bar or watching an elderly Italian signora water the geraniums in her window garden, you will leave a La Romita workshop feeling as though you’ve seen the heart and soul of La Bella Italia.

Email ccsf.extension@ccsf.edu if you have questions.

Refund and Cancelation Policy: In the case the workshop is canceled, a full refund will be issued. 

Please send all refund requests via email to ccsf.extension@ccsf.edu

Before June 1st, 100% refund less a $25 processing fee

June 1st – 14th, 50% refund less a $25 processing fee*

June May 15th, no refund available for any reason, including illness, travel, or other personal circumstances.*

*If you can find a replacement to fill your spot, we will issue a full refund.

City Extension runs on enrollment fees alone and is not tax funded. The decision to run a workshop is based on enrollment numbers. Thank you for understanding!