Presenting Maggie Renner Hellmann

Words don’t do justice to all Maggie’s charming and artistic attributes. As a complete novice, she guided me with tact and inspiration and I ended up quite proud of my watercolour daubs that resembled those by a 2-year-old. Still, practice makes perfect!

Maggie is good at teaching in all mediums and with all levels. She did wonderful demos. Every day we did critiques together and learned from each other. I highly recommend this art workshop as well as the most wonderful accommodation with great food and wine. A little piece of heaven in experiencing Italy.

A lovely holiday, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. Excellent tuition from Maggie. Superb scenery. Delicious food. Many thanks for everything.

Maggie, what I loved so much about your teaching is that you taught from the very basics and it was exactly what I needed! I have taken many classes over the years, but none like this. I really should have learned the basics but I hadn’t. All of your handouts I treasure and have looked at them since Tuscany. They are all invaluable. From color, to composition, layout of palette, shapes and volumes, value and light, all so important. Your encouragement, your drawing and painting skills, and your enthusiasm for color are all an inspiration to me! Thank you sooo much

Participating in a workshop with Maggie is a delight! She is one of the rare artists who likes sharing her knowledge nearly as much as she likes to paint. Her demos are a delightful opportunity to be a fly on the wall as she goes through the various steps in the process while simultaneously explaining each step: composition, sketching, laying in the colors, developing a completed painting, and demonstrating and explaining her courageous use of color. Her critiques are equally helpful to the novice and the experienced artist. They are honest, very helpful, and still kind. It was great to see the improvement in each artist’s paintings though out the week. These things, along with her availability to help and answer questions throughout the day are reasons I would be happy to take another workshop with her when the opportunity arises. The Watermill was a perfect place; beautiful, well appointed, organized, and the camaraderie of the gracious gatherings, and the food!

We had a wonderful time last week. Loved it all—the Botticelli room and the comfy bedding. Our delightful hosts. Your organization and thoughtfulness. Karsten! Our excellent drivers. The location and the beautiful Watermill property in general. The help you gave us both before and during the week. I would encourage others to take classes at The Watermill.

Thank you for all your work , welcome and hospitality to make our week in the Watermill so pleasant. The place is very beautiful and conducive to art and relaxation. The food was really lovely and so beautifully presented. I really appreciated all the extra effort you made to see that we, non painters, were educated and entertained.

The accommodation in picturesque rural surroundings in Tuscany was very comfortable and restful with all amenities. Everything ran like clockwork. Delicious food appeared as if by magic at mealtimes washed down by copious quantities of local wine. Excursions and transport were well planned and there were no hitches. Nothing was too much trouble for Lois and Bill Breckon or for Karsten.

Members of staff were unobtrusive and everything imaginable was done to render it a memorable week. The fellowship of other participants (painting and non- painting) was interesting and congenial. All in all, it was a most enjoyable holiday.