BEYOND THE SURFACE: INDIRECT FIGURE PAINTING with Nicola Verlato

OVERVIEW

• Arrival: Sunday, August 31st, 2024 with Orientation and Welcome Dinner in the evening.

• Studio days: Monday, September 1st - Friday, September 5th, with Farewell Dinner on Friday evening.

• Checkout/Departure: morning of Saturday, September 6th.

• Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner (except on Wednesdays; the hotel's restaurant is closed)

• How to Reach Us: Pickup from Palermo (PMO) airport See our pickup policy

• Materials needed for the workshop: Oil paint, brushes, primed surfaces.   

• What we provide: solvent, medium, rags, brush soap, studio easels, support boards, sandpaper, pencil sharpener, kneaded eraser, chalk, palette knives, and jars at no additional cost.  Please see these provided items.

• Rentals: Sicily Artist Retreats provides Paint Pass and Plein Air Kit rentals.  You are welcome to bring your own materials or rent ours. Paint Pass gives you unlimited use of paint for a flat fee.  Plein Air Kits provide equipment for the field.  

• Purchases: In addition, painting surfaces (like paper and linen) are available onsite to purchase.

• Rental Car: Car rental is not necessary but recommended if you'd like to explore the area after class.

A typical intensive studio workshop day can look like:

8:00 – 9:00 AM Breakfast 

9:15 AM Transfer to Studio 

9:30 AM Model is posed, class begins 

1:00 – 2:00 PM Lunch break  

2:00 – 4:30 PM Class resumes 

4:30– 5:00 PM Clean up

5:00 PM             Transfer to hotel*

8:00 PM             Dinner at hotel

*Some evenings (after clean up) may also include a transfer to a local site visit before dinner.

ABOUT NICOLA VERLATO

Nicola Verlato is a painter, sculptor, architect, musician  born in Verona on 19-02-1965.  He studied painting in the studio of an elderly friar in a monastery from the age of 9 to 14. He studied lute and composition at the conservatories of Verona and Padua. He studied architecture at the University of Venice.

Among the numerous exhibition occasions, the 53rd Venice Biennale in 2009, the Prague and Tirana Biennials in 2001, 2003, and 2004,  the Rome Quadriennial in 1996 and 2008, the Exhibitions at the Royal Palace and  the PAC in Milan,  the MART in Rovereto, the National Museum of Stockholm, and of Helsinki, the Nuit Blanche of Toronto,  Akron Contemporary Art Museum , White columns art center in New York ,  Macro Museum in Roma ,  Made in Cloister Foundation in Napoli e a Villa D'Este a Tivoli.

His works are present in the collections of the MART Museum in Rovereto, the George Lucas Museum in Los Angeles, Del Musac in Salamanca and the Ilo Ilo Museum.  After 14 years in Venice, 7 in Milan, 7 in New York, and 7 in Los Angeles he now resides in Rome.

WORKSHOP DETAILS

First day: Drawing on canvas. Students will begin to outline their subject on the canvas.

Second and third day: Underpainting, monochrome in oil. Students will apply a layer of

monochromatic oil paint to define the shape and chiaroscuro of the subject.

Fourth day: First glaze. Students will begin layering transparent paint to add depth and detail to

their painting.

Fifth day: Second glaze. They will continue to add layers of color to further enrich the painting.

Sixth day: Touch-ups. This will be the time to refine and perfect the painting.

Live demo by Nicola Verlato During the workshop, Nicola Verlato will create a live demo, painting live. This will allow students to see in real time how to apply the techniques discussed during the course.

NICOLA'S MATERIALS LIST:

• Brushes

• Fusain

• Support :

• 3 Stretched universal primed linen medium size 50x70

• Colors:

• Titanium White,

• Lead White

• alizarin Lake

• Indian yellow

• ultramarine blue

• Sap  green

• Natural umber ( the greenest as possible, Norma by Shminke is the brand I use)

• Burnt umber

• Mars Black

• Mediums:

• Linen oil

• Liquin or Galkyd

WHAT'S INCLUDED

For your convenience, essential materials for the workshop are available for rental or purchase to facilitate your travel. In addition, you'll enjoy several excursions to gorgeous local sites during the week.

Refreshments are available during studio breaks.  Delicious home-cooked Italian lunches are provided on studio days.  Box lunches are provided on most excursions.  Dinners are provided at the hotel except on Wednesdays (when the hotel's restaurant is closed). You will have the option to eat at a local restaurant or pizzeria with Nicola and other participants on this day.  This dinner is not included.

For those bringing a Non-Participating Partner, we highly recommend that they book local excursions or tours while you are in the studio here! We recommend that Non-Participating Partners rent a car or arrange car services through Baglio Custera in advance so they can easily travel around on their own. Since there is no lunch service at Baglio Custera, Non-Participating Partners are encouraged to eat lunch at a local cafe.

ACCOMMODATION

You will be staying at Baglio Custera, a boutique hotel in the heart of Marsala’s countryside. Known for its gardens and luxurious swimming pool, this modern resort stands on the Rakalia hill, the site of an ancient shrine to Hercules, surrounded by olive and orange groves. Baglio Custera is a brand new hotel built on ancient lines, those of the "baglio," or farmhouse.

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From start to finish you will enjoy the extraordinary cuisine of the region influenced by the unique flavors of the Mediterranean including garden-fresh vegetables, ancient grains, and seafood. All meals, accommodation, and daily ground transport are Included in your package, including a celebratory welcome dinner with Nicola.