Escape to the cliffs and colors of Italy’s Cinque Terre for a one-week plein air workshop where the historic beauty of pastel villages meeting sea and sky becomes your live painting studio.

Why this workshop is different
This isn’t just a painting trip—it’s designed as a creative retreat that balances freedom with structure. Each morning, we’ll paint on location under luminous Mediterranean light. You’ll learn to simplify what you’re seeing—distilling shapes, values, and energy—so your painting stays expressive, confident, and clear, no matter the medium you choose (watercolor, gouache, acrylic, pastel, sketching, or visual journaling).

What you’ll build skills in:
• Simplifying scenes into strong compositions
• Capturing changing light with clarity and speed
• Choosing bold, harmonious colors with intention
• Balancing looseness with attention to edge, contrast, and focal points
• Painting both quick studies and more resolved pieces—inside or out

Beyond the easel
We’ll stay in a charming Ligurian farmhouse perched above Monterosso, surrounded by olive groves and Mediterranean light. Evenings bring local dinners with wine, a boat trip to sketch Porto Venere, market day in Vernazza, and time to savor caprese, pesto, and focaccia—all part of what makes this more than a workshop—it’s a full immersion.

Ready to loosen up, paint boldly, and capture life in a painterly way?
Spaces are limited. Join us for a week that nourishes both your creativity and your spirit.

Link to reserve: https://ilchiostro.com/workshop/plein-air-painting-sketching-in-the-cinque-terre-with-patti-mollica/