I have been to Texas…and it is a very cool place.  Open, friendly people and a thriving arts scene.  Of course this is common knowledge, especially in the Southwest, but I’m fortunate to have had the chance to experience it first hand.  My hosts in Austin, the Richards / Zeugin clan, were wonderful.  The chance to have breakfast tacos and learn about Tex / Mex cuisine in general was just part of it.  Sharon Zeugin and her daughter Maeve and husband Clark Richards helped me

First…we sincerely wish each of you the most enjoyable and meaningful holiday season.  The La Romita family is certainly far-flung, with our extended family reaching around the globe…and including each of you.  This family extends in time as well as space; some of you haven’t been back to Umbria in decades but your cards and missives—electronic or otherwise—continue to arrive and to warm our hearts.  I have just finished my tenth season at La Romita, and having worked with about 1500 participants, feel I’m just

…and now…the season windup.  Charlotte Attebery, a longtime La Romita teacher / friend, and her group of Californians left on October 4th and we began the process of closing up the convent for the winter.  Hatches are battened, gates are closed, and gear is stored as the winds from the Apennine Mountains take on a bit of a bite.  Each year we watch the sunset as it travels day by day across the “Conca Ternana”, (as the bowl-shaped valley of Terni is known).  In mid-summer

Katherine Brimberry departed about a week ago for home with her group of print-makers.  We know that Flatbed Press in Austin is one of the best print-making studios in the country, but we didn’t know how entertaining and inspiring it would be to shake this place up with Katherine’s innovative techniques.  To call her processes “green” would be perhaps confusing in the world of art, where green is a pretty established concept.  We can call them “non-toxic.”  The power of the sun and an old

We continue into August with one of the nicest summers in recent memory…cool evenings and 85 degree afternoons and perfect mornings for exploring the hill towns. Our last group was actually two groups put together: Carol Duchamp and her Bay Area Art Trek painters, and a group of artists from North Carolina lead by Fritz Kapraun and Virginia Wright-Frierson. The groups melded beautifully and trans-continental friendships flourished. Carol paints colorful mystic abstracts while Fritz specializes in en plein air watercolors and Ginny is a consummate

The weather in Italy is sunny and warm all summer. That’s hardly a surprise. What’s been surprising is how cool it’s been this July – but really, nobody’s complaining. The Carol and Ed Maddox show left on the 7th with smiles on their faces and incredibly heavy luggage. When Ed and Carol are here, they are treated not only to Carol’s thoughtful and spot-on critiques and her treasure trove of techniques, but also Ed’s expertise on wines and foods…sometimes quite obscure…usually with an interesting story

A note from Holly Quan (2011 Participant) For the past two weeks, we’ve been living in a paint box. Think about it. Everywhere you look, there is color, juicy color. Gelato in jewel tones, pottery, brilliant flowers, everywhere your eye settles there is color. Whether your native palette is the black and white of a prairie winter, the monochrome of the high desert, or the concrete and glass of a big city, I think it’s safe to say that most of us are unaccustomed to

June is the time of wildflowers in Italy; the colors are often breathtaking.  To paraphrase our native Francis of Assisi, the supreme beauty of nature attracts souls as well as bees.  Here are a couple of photos I took the other day of a nearby field: After Barry Thomas and his Arkansas travelers, the young artists of Ball State University’s Fine Arts Department brought their energy and talent to this old monastery.  Professors Scott Anderson and David Hannon, both accomplished artists, helped their charges decorate