This is an exciting, new two-week Art Safari combination in southern Italy, painting its natural and cultural riches.

James Willis leads you to viewpoints and sets you off into an extraordinary journey of painting, with demonstrations and one-to-one tuition.  Jame’s knowledge of art history is never far from the surface as you paint some of the most picturesque of southern Italian landscapes. Finding structure and perspective is key in this area, where architectural styles are so important.

In between our painting stops, there is time to wander cool stone streets of historic towns, stopping at the little boutiques to admire the highly skilled local handicrafts – exquisite ceramics, chic linens, unusual jewellery and handmade paper…  perhaps with a side order of ‘caffé and cannoli’ or a mid-afternoon gelato!

There is an option to do both weeks, or to decide to join the group for Amalfi only, or for Sicily only. Please ask us.

The first week is spent painting in Amalfi, staying in Minori, a town at the heart of the Amalfi Coast.  Stretching along the serpentine edge of the Sorrentine Peninsula, the Amalfi Coast is one of Italy’s most memorable destinations.  Here steep, craggy cliffs plunge into a sparkling Mediterranean and pastel-coloured villages spill down the mountain sides that are terraced with fragrant lemon groves.  Our sketchbooks fill with spectacular vistas, elegant villas and arbours laden with bright bougainvillea, hillside churches in mix of architectural styles, and street scenes among the ancient alleyways and archways…

Our second week is spent painting in Sicily, an island of contrasts.  From fertile volcanic land, ancient and arid ruins to baroque style architecture, it offers fresh inspiration for painters around every corner.  We explore the western side of the island, painting secluded inlets and coves, fishing villages, Greek temples, and shimmering slat pans dotted with windmills.

The southern tip of Italy is also about food – what could be better at the end of a blissful day’s painting!  Amalfi’s cuisine is full of fresh flavours, tomatoes, lemons and the sea on your plate – shrimps, redfish, bream, sea urchins, octopus, blue, mussels…  Further south, Sicilian food is melting pot of flavours from Africa, Arabia and Spain with a vibrant street food scene too.