Large, Grey and Unmistakable 2025

We will be exploring South Luangwa National Park, which is an extraordinary and beautiful wildlife area, full of game.  It’s one of our favourite places and... Read more

From £2,290 pp tented camp, £2,890 riverview, £3,050 luxury chalets
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Date
29 Sep - 06 Oct 2025


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Location(s)
South Luangwa National Park
AFRICA / Zambia


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Tour content
Sketching African wildlife from life


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Tutor(s)
Mary-Anne Bartlett, Tom Shepherd

Join us on a residential Art Safari to one of Africa’s top National Parks where we spend a full week painting.

We will be exploring South Luangwa National Park, which is an extraordinary and beautiful wildlife area, full of game.  It’s one of our favourite places and is often described as ‘Another Eden’.

We are delighted that Tom Shepherd will be leading this Art Safari with Mary-Anne, who has traversed this park sketching every year since 2022. She is thrilled to share it with you.

South Luangwa is the hotspot for African wildlife on the continent.

Our base for this wildlife sketching week is a friendly, simple safari lodge situated just outside the park on the banks of the Luangwa River. Originally built by Mary-Anne and friends and now under new ownership, Thornicroft Lodge holds a fabulous position on the river.  There is always something happening at the water’s edge – whether it is hippos and crocodiles lazing around, or elephants coming to drink!  Wildlife can also wander freely through the lodge at any time of day. There is always some action to be sketched and drawn somewhere in camp…

This is a time of year that’s fantastic for elephants.  So we set out to show that they are not always ‘large, grey and unmistakable’!  Bring enough litres of grey to paint an elephant, but bring your colours too.

We focus on wildlife sketching from open vehicles and use the time back in camp in the afternoons to work up sketches into paintings in watercolour and other portable media.  Your tutors will give demonstrations and provide one-to-one tuition time.  They will help you to develop your way of working, and observational techniques for drawing moving animals from life.

On our day and night game drives, we hope to fill our sketchbooks with elephant, lion, leopard, giraffe, zebra, impala, kudu, baboons, and warthog on the grassy floodplains and mopane woodlands, not to mention pods of hippo and numerous water birds in the ox-bow lagoons of the Luangwa River!

This is a hot time of year when the animals congregate in the main Mfuwe area near to permanent water.  It’s highly exciting.  The skies are clear and blue, and predators are more numerous and more tempted by the plains game – making an encounter with the Luangwa’s famous leopards even more likely….

By giving yourself a week’s painting in the bush you have a wonderful opportunity to study animals in depth, improving your field sketching techniques and your plein air confidence.

Whatever your level of artistic skill, the combination of art and wildlife is unbelievably exciting, challenging and great fun!

Itinerary

Day 1Arrive in Lusaka, fly to Mfuwe and transfer to Thornicroft Lodge
Days 2-7Game drives and sketching in South Luangwa National Park with workshops in camp
Day 8Depart Thornicroft Lodge, fly Mfuwe to Lusaka for flight home
Ask for full itinerary
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TOUR COST:
Per person sharing from £2,290 in the tented camp with fans, £2,890 river-view chalets with fans, or £3,050 new luxury chalets with AC and fans

Single room supplement from £420 per person in tented camp, £540 in river-view chalets, £600 in luxury chalets.

AVAILABILITY:

3x Tented camp, 1x River View (1x sharing space only), 1x Luxury Chalet (wait-list)

There are a few room types available and the tour cost varies accordingly.  Please ask us for more information.  Please note that the tented camp has shared facilities, both chalet types have river views and are both en suite.

EXTRA DAYS:

You might like to arrive earlier and stay longer.  Please talk to us about options. We can tailor extensions to your wish list!

FLIGHTS:

The joining point for this Art Safari is Mfuwe Airport.

Please liaise with us for flight timings; we aim to have the group all travelling on the same flights. If arriving at a different time from the group, there may be a small charge for separate airport transfers.

 

 

OUR PRICES INCLUDE:
All accommodation, all meals, safari guide and art safari tutor. All game activities as indicated, all return transfers from Mfuwe airport to your lodge.

OUR PRICES EXCLUDE:
Airfares from your home country and internal flights, visa fee, departure taxes, park entrance fees (currently $25 per day), art materials, drinks and personal expenses

Enquire now on 01394 382235 or [email protected]

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