Watermill Blog

Information and news about our creative centre in Tuscany Italy

The Invasion of the Sinuous Aliens: a joint Terenzoni/ Watermill production!

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It looks like a still from one of those Sci-Fi B movies: strange alien creatures invade the Earth. But fear not, these are just ornamental gourds that our gardener Flavio Terenzoni has arranged around the Watermill’s collection of demijohns in the corner of the courtyard.

Come and join in the creative fun yourself on one of our unique painting, writing, knitting and Italian language courses. As well as inspiring teaching, warm hospitality, spectacular locations, delicious food and wine and the convivial company, you will also enjoy our Early Bird discount bonus. There is £75 (British pounds) off the cost of your 2024 creative holiday if you book now.

We have now banished the scary gourds to a corner of the olive press!

These are the inspiring painting courses planned for 2024.

Carl March

Carl March
20-27 April 2024 
Drawing and watercolours en plein air
To learn more about Carl and his course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Maggie Renner Hellmann

Maggie Renner Hellmann
25 May – 1 June 2024
‘Colourful & Expressive Oil & watercolour’ (also Travel sketching, acrylics, and pastel)
To learn more about Maggie and her course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Randy Hale

Randy Hale
8 – 15 June 2024 
Watercolour
To learn more about Randy and his course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Keiko Tanabe

Keiko Tanabe
15 – 22 June 2024 
Watercolours
To learn more about Keiko and her course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Michael Solovyev

Michael Solovyev **NEW WATERMILL TUTOR**
22 – 29 June 2024 
‘Atmospheric Landscape in Watercolour: Studio/Plein Air’
To learn more about Michael and his course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Paul Talbot-Greaves

Paul Talbot-Greaves
29 June – 6 July 2024 
Watercolour
To learn more about Paul and his course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Yong Chen

Yong Chen **NEW WATERMILL TUTOR**
6 – 13 July 2024 
Watercolour
To learn more about Yong and his course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Sue Ford

Sue Ford
13 – 20 July 2024
Watercolours 
To learn more about Sue and her course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Andrew Hucklesby

Fiona Graham Mackay
17 – 24 August 2024
Painting en plein air (oil, acrylic, watercolour and pastel)
To learn more about Fiona and her course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Pamme Turner

Pamme Turner
24 – 31 August 2024
Watercolour and gouache
To learn more about Pamme and her course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Mike Willdridge

Mike Willdridge
7 – 14 September 2024 
Watercolour and drawing (also gouache and acrylics)
To learn more about Mike and his course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Rebecca de Mendonça

Rebecca de Mendonça
14 – 21 September 2024 
Pastels
To learn more about Rebecca and her course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Tim Wilmot

Tim Wilmot
28 September
Watercolours
To learn more about Tim and his course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Grahame Booth

Grahame Booth
5 – 12 October 2024
Watercolours
To learn more about Grahame and his course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

La Bella Vita knitting courses for 2024.

Susan Crawford

Susan Crawford **NEW WATERMILL TUTOR**
27 April – 4 May 2024
Knitting and La Bella Vita
To learn more about Susan and her course at the mill, please visit her 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Norah Gaughan

Norah Gaughan
4 – 11 May 2024
Knitting and La Bella Vita
To learn more about Norah and her course at the mill, please visit her 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Louisa Harding

Louisa Harding
11 – 18 May 2024
Knitting and La Bella Vita
To learn more about Louisa and her course at the mill, please visit her 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Debbie Abrahams

Debbie Abrahams
18 – 25 May 2024 
Knitting and La Bella Vita
To learn more about Debbie and her course at the mill, please visit her 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Sylvia Watts-Cherry

Sylvia Watts-Cherry **NEW WATERMILL TUTOR**
1 – 8 June 2024 
Knitting and La Bella Vita
To learn more about Sylvia and her course at the mill, please visit her 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Our renowned Writing Your Life Stories course

Jo Parfitt

Jo Parfitt
21 – 28 September 2024 – still plenty of places
Write your life stories
To learn more about Jo and her course at the mill, please visit please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Our unique Italian language course

Giulia Balestri
12 – 19 October 2024 – still plenty of places
Learning Italian with the Italians
For more details on Giulia’s 2024 course, please visit the 2024 Tutor programme page.

Celebrating the changing seasons at the Watermill. Now it’s polenta time again, delicious with porcini mushrooms.

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Picture: Gina Shearston

As summer turns to autumn, it’s the time of the maize harvest, when the cobs are hung up to dry, the start of the process of making making maize flour, the basis of polenta, a kind of porridge, a staple Italian dish. It is particularly delicious with porcini mushrooms, which are prolific in the autumn.

It is also a tradition for Flavio Terenzoni, our gardener, to hang a few maize cobs on a Watermill wall, which he did again last week (above) and for guests on Watermill courses to paint them. Here’s the picture by Ellen Barnett, a guest on Charles Sluga’s course this week:

And here’s the appetising polenta and porcini dish, cooked by Watermill chef Ombretta Mezzi.

What a wonderful way to mark the changing season!

Why not come and sample our seasonal dishes on a Watermill painting course next year, and as well as savouring delicious food with fresh local ingredients, enjoy inspiring tuition, exciting locations, warm hospitality, and the convivial company of like-minded people.

All that and, if you book now our special Early Bird discount of £75 (British pounds) off your 2024 creative holiday.

Our exhilarating 2024 painting courses

These are the inspiring, yet relaxing, painting courses planned for 2024.

Carl March

Carl March
20-27 April 2024 
Drawing and watercolours en plein air
To learn more about Carl and his course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Maggie Renner Hellmann

Maggie Renner Hellmann
25 May – 1 June 2024
‘Colourful & Expressive Oil & watercolour’ (also Travel sketching, acrylics, and pastel)
To learn more about Maggie and her course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Randy Hale

Randy Hale
8 – 15 June 2024 
Watercolour
To learn more about Randy and his course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Keiko Tanabe

Keiko Tanabe
15 – 22 June 2024 
Watercolours
To learn more about Keiko and her course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Michael Solovyev

Michael Solovyev **NEW WATERMILL TUTOR**
22 – 29 June 2024 
‘Atmospheric Landscape in Watercolour: Studio/Plein Air’
To learn more about Michael and his course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Paul Talbot-Greaves

Paul Talbot-Greaves
29 June – 6 July 2024 
Watercolour
To learn more about Paul and his course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Yong Chen

Yong Chen **NEW WATERMILL TUTOR**
6 – 13 July 2024 
Watercolour
To learn more about Yong and his course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Sue Ford

Sue Ford
13 – 20 July 2024
Watercolours 
To learn more about Sue and her course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Andrew Hucklesby

Fiona Graham Mackay
17 – 24 August 2024
Painting en plein air (oil, acrylic, watercolour and pastel)
To learn more about Fiona and her course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Pamme Turner

Pamme Turner
24 – 31 August 2024
Watercolour and gouache
To learn more about Pamme and her course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Mike Willdridge

Mike Willdridge
7 – 14 September 2024 
Watercolour and drawing (also gouache and acrylics)
To learn more about Mike and his course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Rebecca de Mendonça

Rebecca de Mendonça
14 – 21 September 2024 
Pastels
To learn more about Rebecca and her course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Tim Wilmot

Tim Wilmot
28 September
Watercolours
To learn more about Tim and his course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

Grahame Booth

Grahame Booth
5 – 12 October 2024
Watercolours
To learn more about Grahame and his course at the mill, please visit the 2024 Tutor Profile Page.

And so farewell and thank you for your convivial company…

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Convivial creativity at Brienne’s farewell show. Video: Gina Shearston

…to Brienne Brown and a delightful group of painters and partners from the USA and the UK. The conversation was convivial, the weather, warm (with one wet day) and the painting, prolific. Above is a short video the group’s farewell show, demonstrating their convivial creativity.

The warm and welcoming Watermill, by painting tutor Brienne Brown.

Put yourself in the picture and join one of our convivial creative weeks next year. We have a special discount offer on just at the moment: an Early Bird Discount of £75 (English pounds) if you book any of our 2024 creative courses before the end of the year.

The fortified village of Verrucola is one of our painting locations.

If you want to enjoy inspiring teaching, warm hospitality, a beautiful setting, spectacular locations, delicious food and wine, the convivial company of like-minded people AND an Early Bird discount, cast off your inhibitions, now is the time to make a booking. Come and join us!

More about everything on the Watermill website.

Click here for more

Another inspiring ‘illuustrated handout’, from Brienne

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l am delighted to tell you that our current painting tutor Brienne Brown has just added to our collection of ‘illustrated handouts’ or ‘annotated sketches’ made by our painting tutors to help their students understand more about the art and craft of drawing and painting. These inspiring artefacts remind me of illustrated travel journals in which not only are there sketches of the sights seen, but also notes about time, place, history, emotions aroused and so on.

Brienne made three ‘annotated sketches’ on Thursday, celebrating our visit to the tranquil Convento del Carmine. The first (above) is a Value Study of a flight of steps at the convent. And here’s a monochromatic painting, which allows you to practice the ‘painting process’ without the confusion of colour.

And finally we have the coloured version, with practical tips on how to achieve the best results.

Brienne has combined all three into one picture, which we shall frame and hang in pride of place at the Watermill. Mille grazie, Brienne

Come and see for yourself. There are full details of all our creative courses – painting, writing, knitting and Italian language – on our new updated website, which you can see by clicking here.

Just click here to see this page

And don’t forget our Watermill Early Bird offer: There’s Â£75 (English pounds) off all our 2024 creative if you reserve your place this year.

If you want to enjoy inspiring teaching, warm hospitality, a beautiful setting, spectacular locations, delicious food and wine and the convivial company of like-minded people AND an Early Bird discount now is the time to reserve your place. The Early Bird offer expires at the end of the year.

Irresistable!

Watermill painting courses: we must be doing something right!

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We have just had another rave review on Trip Advisor for a Watermill painting course. This time it is from Kim, who was on Mike Willdridge‘s course last week.

Kim writes: “I’ve just returned from an excellent week of painting, gourmet eating and sightseeing from this gorgeous venue.
The Watermill is so peaceful, the art studio large and looks out over the hills and stream. It is set in beautiful grounds which contain large bamboo trees,many streams and wooden bridges and a rustic watermill underneath the older building….so many spots in which to paint plein air.
Lois and Bill are great hosts and Lois can certainly cook gourmet well. Our art tutor that week gave us helpful demonstrations in how to mix and apply the various paint media.
At the end the week they all felt like family, especially with the departing hugs!”

Thank you Kim. We are glad you had such a marvellous time.

A bubbly art show from the guests at the end of Mike’s painting week.

NOW is time to be sure of your place on the 2024 Watermill creative course of your choice. Places are filling fast and our Early Bird offer gives you generous £75 (English pounds) off any of our painting, writing, knitting or Italian language courses.

Click here for more

If you want to enjoy inspiring teaching, warm hospitality, a beautiful setting, spectacular locations, delicious food and wine and the convivial company of like-minded people AND an Early Bird discount get your reservation in. More details about our 2024 creative courses can be found here.

Brienne gives full value from the beginning of her course!

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Editor: Gina Shearston

We are so pleased to welcome back the delightful watercolour painter Brienne Brown, who is leading a convivially creative course, with guests (eight painters and four non-painting partners) from the USA and the UK.

Above is Lois Breckon’s video of Brienne in the walled garden emphasising the importance of Values in painting.

Why don’t you add value to your life by joining a creative course at the Watermill next year?. The Early Bird discount of £75 (British pounds) makes each convivial course even better value for money. But hurry! Places are filling fast and the Early Bird offer expires at the end of the year.

Just click here for more.

Want to know more? Just click here

And so farewell…

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As ever, Gina Shearston captured the atmosphere of the farewell show in the video above

…to Mike Willdridge and a delightful and diverse group of painters and partners from the USA, Australia and the UK. The conversation was convivial, the weather, warm and the painting, prolific. Above is a short video the group’s farewell show, demonstrating their convivial creativity.

You, too, could be in a picture like this if you join one of our Creative weeks next year. We have a special discount offer on just at the moment: an Early Bird Discount of £75 (English pounds) if you book any of our 2024 creative courses before the end of the year.

Just one of the many peaceful scenes you will encounter during a Watermill creative week

If you want to enjoy inspiring teaching, warm hospitality, a beautiful setting, spectacular locations, delicious food and wine, the convivial company of like-minded people AND an Early Bird discount, cast off your inhibitions, now is the time to make a booking. Come and join us!

More about everything on the Watermill website.

Don’t miss out on our Early Bird discount.

A striking pastel by Andrée of the river that runs by the Watermill

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This lovely pastel, by Watermill guest Andrée Smith, is of the River Rosaro, which runs beside the Watermill. Andrée was on Mary Padgett’s creative week in August.

Thank you for sharing this with this, Andrée. I think it has captured the spirit of our mountain river perfectly.

Now is time to reserve your place on the 2024 creative course of your choice. Places are filling fast and our Early Bird offer gives you generous £75 (English pounds) off any of our painting, writing, knitting or Italian language courses.

Click here for more.

If you want to enjoy inspiring teaching, warm hospitality, a beautiful setting, spectacular locations, delicious food and wine and the convivial company of like-minded people AND an Early Bird discount get your reservation in NOW. More detail, click here.

How can you spot an American in Italy (or any other foreigner, come to that)?

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Linguine alle vongole. No cheese, please!

A recent question in Quora, the Internet information and opinion sharing platform, asked: How can you spot an American in Italy?

Joseph Panzarella, who lives in Brazil but who has travelled the world, says a ‘litmus test’ might be linguine alle vongole, long, thin strips of pasta with a clam sauce. When he was young, he says, it was a favourite Friday night dinner dish and “We always ate it covered with lots of grated cheese.”

Joseph adds: “Want to spot the American in Italy? He’s the one insisting that the server bring grated cheese for his linguine with clam sauce while the server is insisting that it must never be eaten that way.”

I don’t think it is just Americans, but many other foreigners, too, including we Brits, who can’t resist a Parmesan sprinkle.

Don’t sprinkle on fish dishes

The Italians, who take their food very seriously, think the cheese overwhelms the subtle flavour of the clams (or any other fish). There are horrified if you sprinkle cheese on them. There is a similar restriction on drinking cappuccino after lunch, but this is more a matter of digestion than taste. (See our blog on this.)

Not after 11am, thank you!

I tend to be more relaxed and say that people can eat or drink what they like, when they like. On the other hand, I’d be horrified, too, if people put marmalade on their kippers, or ice in their single malt Scotch whisky. (A sacrilege!)

Add a little water, perhaps, but ice? Never!

Come and enjoy true Italian cooking on a Watermill creative course. But I don’t think you’d make our cooks happy if you sprinkled Parmesan on their fish dishes or put ice in Bill’s malt whisky.

Now is time to reserve your place on the 2024 course of your choice. Places are filling fast and our Early Bird offer gives you generous £75 (English pounds) off any of our painting, writing, knitting or Italian language courses.

Click here for more.

If you want to enjoy inspiring teaching, warm hospitality, a beautiful setting, spectacular locations, delicious food and wine and the convivial company of like-minded people AND an Early Bird discount get your reservation in NOW. More detail, click here.

A final poetic reminder of our Early Bird offer– and some anatomic Brooklyn doggerel

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Picture: Image Flip

Continuing our series of poems about birds, to celebrate our Watermill Early Bird special offer, here’s another one by the prolific writer Anon, which is short and to the point:

The early bird,

So, I have heard,

Captures the worm,

And on my word,

I know two chaps,

And yet a third,

Could learn a lesson

From that bird.

Yes, now is time to be sure of your place on the 2024 Watermill creative course of your choice. Places are filling fast and our Early Bird offer gives you generous £75 (English pounds) off any of our painting, writing, knitting or Italian language courses.

Click here for more

If you want to enjoy inspiring teaching, warm hospitality, a beautiful setting, spectacular locations, delicious food and wine and the convivial company of like-minded people AND an Early Bird discount get your reservation in. More details about our 2024 creative courses can be found here.

But I can’t resist leaving you with another piece of Brooklyn doggerel and some astute anatomical observation:

Di Spring is Sprung,

Di grass is riz.

I wonder where dem boidies is?

Di little boids is on di wing.

Ain’t that absoid?

Di little wings

Is on di boid!

Picture: Wings of Imagination (worthwhilesmile.com)