I'm not a very daring individual and normally wouldn’t have considered venturing off to Italy alone – and certainly not to an "art workshop" in Tuscany. That would have sounded too adventurous and intimidating to someone like me who thinks she can't draw a straight line. It would be better, I thought, to stick to the usual tours that devote themselves to sampling Italy’s wine and gourmet food. That would be an easier itinerary for a traveler like me to digest than learning how to paint. 

That was before I discovered “Workshops in Italy, led by Fred Wessel and Jeremiah Patterson. Now I can sample the best wines, dine on authentic Tuscan cuisine, see famous works of art reproduced in books, experience local culture, meet wonderful people, and learn to paint.  Suddenly I’m not such an unadventurous traveler!

I spent the first five days of the very enjoyable 13-day Workshop at Fattoria Vagli, a renovated country estate providing hospitality to travelers. Actually, “hospitality” is an inadequate word: Our group of 15 became part of the family who opened both their doors and their hearts to welcome us. The idyllic country setting felt like home when we returned from excursions. Day trips ensured that we saw, and tasted, the best of the local offerings.

A visit to a vineyard to sample Michelangelo's favorite, Vernaccia wine, and a trip to San Gimignano with its still-standing ancient towers were wonderful introductions to the area. Did Vernaccia stimulate Michelangelo's artistic talents? In San Gimignano, we looked up at a tower covered with plants that were alive and blossoming in 1253 when young Santa Fina died. We saw frescoes depicting her life, dined on local specialties, including cinghiale (wild boar,) and had award-winning gelato.

The unspoiled walled village of Monteriggioni also transported us back to medieval times. A visit to a family provided insights into rural life in Italy. In the curing shed, we noticed a row of small pork shoulders and hams and learned that cinghiale had mated with pigs and the offspring were too dangerous and wild to domesticate. We knew that cinghiale roamed freely in the woods around Fattoria Vagli and we had hoped, without success, to see some during our evening walks.  I had thought that painting Tuscany's flora and fauna would be an interesting challenge, and since cinghiale are a significant part of the fauna, obviously they would have to be included. 

On our way home from the farm, we caught a glimpse of a big cinghiale with tusks charging across the road in front of the bus. Further down the road, a baby cinghiale ran off the road into the forest. The creatures really are prevalent and we suddenly were relieved that we hadn't met them while walking. It also explained the fenced fattoria grounds – my thoughts of painting them ended!  It seemed fitting that stewed cinghiale was one of the dishes Mama Emilia included in the final feast for her transient family.

Now you may be wondering at this point if the trip really was a hands-on art workshop. It definitely was. Painting instruction began the day after we arrived at the fattoria with demonstrations of two media, watercolor and egg tempera. Workshop participants painted each day under the patient guidance of Fred and Jeremiah. The inexperienced soon learned that it was fun to paint and they could actually do it (no straight lines required). Experienced painters learned new techniques to enhance their work. It didn't matter where you looked – the countryside was so beautiful that there was always a scene begging you to capture it in a painting. 

Fred Wessel and Jeremiah Patterson are both established painters with successful careers as artists.  They also have the talent to teach both novice and experienced painters and have a sincere desire to share their knowledge.  The individual attention we received ensured that our painting skills grew each day.

Too quickly, we had to say farewell to the fattoria and reluctantly boarded the bus with promises that there were other exciting experiences waiting for us. I left the fattoria with great memories and many photos to use when I attempt to recreate the atmosphere of rural Tuscany. On the way to our second destination, we visited Volterra, famous for alabaster. The city's museums and the frescos in the Duomo and Baptistery provided still more artistic inspiration but there was time to visit shops to see the wonderful sculptures by local artisans. When we arrived at Certaldo Alto, we were welcomed with a gourmet dinner and settled in for the next seven days.

Certaldo Alto is a medieval walled complex surrounding the governor's palace that was built at the end of the 12^th century on the ruins of older houses belonging to the Counts Alberti. The village is a painter's paradise!  When you walk down the two main streets, or any of the small passageways, you feel as though you're in a time warp. Staying in a medieval town is a unique experience but I'm not a stickler for total authenticity and certainly enjoyed the convenience of modern electricity and plumbing.

The Osteria del Vicario, our hotel, was originally a 13^th-century monastery but its evolution has included an award winning dining room with a charming sommelier. Every evening, he guided us through the tasting of wines selected to compliment each dinner course. Traditional Tuscan produce was presented on our dinner plates in an appealing and artistic way. While dining on the terrace, the towers of San Gimignano across the valley were always visible. During dinner, night would gently envelop us and we watched the evening sky change through the most amazing blues until the soft darkness allowed the stars to glow softly as they have for all of the centuries that Certaldo Alto has existed. How will I capture those shades of blue in a painting? 

If you needed a reality check to ensure you would be able to get back to the modern world, a trip on the funicula (cable car) and a visit the lower town of Certaldo with modern shops and 20^th-century cars and traffic was always available.

Day trips were also made from Certaldo Alto to explore the region's art and history. The planted, elevated walls of unspoiled Lucca contrasted significantly with a brief visit to Pisa's Field of Miracles, Leaning Tower, and rows of tourist souvenir stalls!  Lucca seemed a much friendlier and relaxed place to visit, and offered more photos to add to my resource material for future paintings. 

A short train trip provided access to the beauty of Florence. In addition to normal tourist attractions, arrangements had been made for us to see the Botticelli and Filippino exhibition, Passion and Grace in Fifteenth-Century Florentine Painting, with work on loan from many of the world's leading museums. A unique experience in Florence was the fresco workshop of Alan Pascuzi, an American artist now living in Italy. We were introduced to traditional fresco techniques and actually painted a small fresco to take home. 

The last day of the workshop had no planned excursions but, as traveling in Italy is quite safe and transportation is convenient, three of us decided to go to Siena and the magic of Florence lured a few of the others to return. On previous trips to Italy, I had driven past Siena several times and now I felt compelled to actually get to the city, stand in the Piazza del Campo, and go inside the Palazzo Pubblico to see the fresco depicting good and bad government. Thanks to the suggestions made by Fred, we were able to accomplish that by ourselves and also see much of Siena's art in just one day. I have finally been to Siena and loved it!

Once again, you may think that all we did was eat, drink wine, and visit museums, art galleries and churches. Not true! There was adequate time to actually paint, and if anyone wanted to miss the excursions and stay behind to paint, that choice was available, too. On our last day in Certaldo Alto, everyone's paintings were displayed and the diversity in the group was very interesting and inspiring. Individuals who hadn't held a paintbrush prior to the workshop were surprised by their accomplishments.  After our "art show," we were treated to a gala final dinner.  You often hear about "starving artists," but when you join Fred and Jeremiah on a workshop you don't experience even mild hunger pangs!

The Tuscany workshop enhanced many facets of my knowledge and skills. I selected egg tempera for painting and certainly learned a great deal about that medium and, as a personal bonus, learned more about water gilding to assist my attempts at iconography.  By watching and listening to participants who selected watercolor, I also increased my knowledge of that medium and am eagerly anticipating trying some new techniques in my paintings. 

Exposure to great works of art, particularly Renaissance and Sienese art, was very educational.  It amazes me that, in the museums, there are no physical barriers to closely examining the works of art I have looked at in books. I could walk right up to a painting and analyze what brushstrokes were used to create the masterpiece.  Explanations of both the historical and technical aspects of the paintings provided by Fred and Jeremiah clarified any points that were difficult to comprehend. 

I enjoy painting architectural landscape, and words cannot adequately describe the scenes that appear with each step you take in Certaldo Alto. The light shining on a pot of flowers and the changes in shadows cast by buildings at different times of the day will be subjects for my paintings over the coming year. If it is true that a picture is worth a thousand words, the paintings I plan to do, based on the photos I took this summer in Tuscany, should be equal to a small library of printed words. 

There might be workshops in Tuscany where participants sit and paint all day, and learn to improve their technical skills, but I could enroll in a workshop near my home and accomplish the same thing.  The workshop I've described provided the opportunity to learn more about the culture that produced some of the world's greatest art, sample authentic Tuscan cuisine and wine, and do all of this with a group of compatible people who share common interests. I'll continue taking painting lessons at home but will be saving money for my next workshop in Italy!