Artists' Travel Journal

Visiting Mykonos during the off-season (October through April) offers a profoundly different experience compared to the frenetic energy of the summer months. Mykonos off-season reveals a quieter, more authentic side of the Cycladic culture, characterized by empty cobblestone streets, local hospitality, and a slower pace of life that allows for deeper exploration of its historical and natural beauty and it gives artists and urban sketchers the physical space and freedom to capture this beautiful island. This is the best time to visit and here are ten reasons why.  1. An Unobstructed View The Kato Mili, or "Lower Windmills," are the...

Does painting in the French Alps seem like a dream? We are here to make your dreams come true! Check out these top 10 things to see and paint in the French Alps. 1. Discover a medieval town with cobbled streets, winding alleyways and canals. 2. Taste the local cuisine: hearty Savoyard specialties like tartiflette, fondue savoyarde, and raclette. Yes, there will be cheese! Lots of cheese! 3. Visit Château de Menthon-Saint-Bernard, the inspiration for Disney’s Sleeping Beauty castle. 4. Explore the Gorges du Fier and walk the catwalk 25 meters above the river. 5. Stroll the Jardin de l’Europe...

The UNESCO World Heritage List includes 1248 cultural and natural properties and Studio 56 participants have sketched 24 of them! That’s impressive! But we’re just getting started! Workshop participants have sketched and painted sites from the ancient Roman Pont du Gard aquaduct in France to Venice and its Lagoon to the pyramids in Uxmal, Mexico. UNESCO chooses these sites because of their “outstanding universal value” with the intention that they should be protected for future generations. They represent significant human achievements such as Stonehenge, architectural marvels such as Pisa, ancient civilizations, or unique cultural traditions such as Mont Saint-Michel. For our purposes, UNESCO...

  Not only is Montenegro a bucket list destination, it’s also a UNESCO World Heritage site rich with historical, cultural and natural attributes that are recognized for their "outstanding universal value”. In the Middle Ages, the Bay of Kotor on the Adriatic coast in Montenegro was an important artistic and commercial centre with its own famous schools of masonry and iconography. The Bay is comprised of two interrelated bays surrounded by mountains rising rapidly to nearly 1,500 metres. Medieval fortified villages clutch the edge of the water at the base of the mountains. The breathtaking mountains and deep azure bay...

Part of the romance of old Quebec City is the abundance of chateaus and turreted gateways that gives travelers the impression they’ve stepped straight into a fairy tale. Just outside the old city ramparts stands the fantastical Armoury of Quebec. This was the first building in Canada built in the “Chateau Style” of architecture by Eugène-Étienne Taché. Inspired by his travels in France, Taché’s design evoked the grandeur of French Renaissance châteaux with medieval elements like twin towers, high-pitched roofs, stone walls, pinnacled turrets, barbican windows and faux gun embrasures. Built between 1885 and 1887, it was never a castle....