17th to 24th May, 2026

The painting holiday will take place in Ithaca and we will focus on landscape painting from beautiful locations - from church terraces with expansive views to beaches where the woodlands reach the shores.

Over a 5 day period, we will explore blocking, colour, expression, light and planes of distance using oil paints. The island offers gorgeous settings with intense and vibrant light that will give us lots of inspiration to express these beautiful landscapes.

The spirit of the week is relaxed, friendly and group driven and all levels of experience are welcome. We will paint together, do group feedback sessions, dinners and cocktails, walks, swims, kayak trips and more.

Daily Workshops:

We will start at 9am and finish at 1 to 1:30pm.

Day 1: We will be painting from the terrace of a church situated over Vathi Village which has an expansive view to the rooftops, bay, roads and houses below.

Working Points: Choosing your view, simplifying, structure, expression, colour.

Evening discovery session ‘Line’.

Day 2: We will be based at a beautiful small bay with sparkling emerald waters and a woodland that comes down to the shore.

Working Points: Drawing, observing, simplifying, colour. We will be painting at the beach so there will be plenty of swimming opportunities.

Day 3: On this day we will work from an ancient location that features in Homer’s The Odyssey. High up in the mountain, we will visit the Cave of the Nymphs and then continue to a little chapel that will be our base for the morning. Here the views are open over the island, the sea and onwards to mainland. It is an opportunity to explore distance and atmosphere.

Working Points: Landscape and distance. Simplifying, expression, colour.

Evening discovery session ‘Artist’s Interpretation’.

Day 4: We will return to our emerald bay and continue to develop our oil painting.

Working Points: Building a painting up during a second sessions. Swimming opportunity!

Day 5: We will explore some of the nooks and crannies of Vathi and find view points that will enable us to quickly sketch with oils. It is a good opportunity to explore the flexibility of oils for quick sessions.

Working Points: Quick oil sketches of urban landscapes.

Discovery Sessions: During the discovery sessions, we will look and discuss the works of some artists like Cezanne, Matisse, Gaugin and many others.

Afternoons: We will plan together activities for the afternoons which are optional, so if you fancy quiet time or doing something else, you can. Activities that we have here include walking and hiking, kayaking, swimming, history and archaeological walks, boat tours, etc… The afternoon activities that involve contracting services and transfers, are not included in the price.

Practicalities:

• Price:

  • Option A: Book your own accommodation

    • 700 euro for the 5 days painting workshops.

  • Option B: 3 Star Family hotel in the centre of Vathi. Includes breakfast

    • 1300 euro

• Stay as many days as you like

• Evening socials

• Bring your own materials and some materials provided.

• The closest airport is in Kefalonia. More info on booking.

CLICK HERE TO ENQUIRE.