A Sincere Look at the 2025 Workshop to Learn Drawing and Watercolor in Charming Places

So, you’re likely thinking about taking a leap, right? I mean, that little voice inside your head has been sort of whispering about picking up a pencil or a brush for a while now. I, well, I had that exact same feeling for years, actually. It was this constant, gentle nudge that I should try to make some art. Honestly, my own drawing ability was pretty much limited to stick figures and, like, lopsided houses. The whole idea of a real art workshop felt a bit out of reach, you know? Something for ‘real’ artists. Yet, here I am, after spending a little over a week completely submerged in sketching and painting, and frankly, I’m changed by it. This workshop, you see, it’s not really just about the art materials and stuff. Obviously, that part is there, but at its heart, it’s almost an invitation to slow down and really observe the world in a way you probably haven’t before. It’s pretty much about finding a new way to see the beauty in an old stone wall or, like, the way light hits a café table. It tends to be a chance to connect with a part of yourself that gets a little bit lost in the day-to-day rush of things.

First Feelings: So Much More Than Just a Classroom

Alright, showing up on that first day, I was honestly a little bundle of nerves. You know the feeling, right? Like you’re the new kid at school all over again. I was basically picturing this very serious, quiet room full of people who were already amazing artists. But, well, what I found was something completely different. It was, in fact, incredibly warm and welcoming from the very first moment. The group was this really interesting mix of folks, you see. There were people, like me, who were more or less complete beginners. Then there were some who had dabbled a bit over the years and were just looking to get back into it. The guides, or tutors, weren’t like stuffy professors at all; instead, they felt more like friendly mentors. They really just wanted to share something they loved. That first evening, we didn’t even pick up a pencil. Instead, we all just, you know, shared a meal together at this long wooden table, sharing stories and what brought us there. It kind of set the whole feeling for the week, you know? It made it clear that this experience was about community as much as it was about composition. This is such a different way of learning and, to be honest, it really helps you feel comfortable enough to try and fail.

As a matter of fact, the setting itself was a huge part of that initial feeling. We weren’t in some boring, plain studio. Instead, we were staying in this really old, character-filled guesthouse with walls that had seen centuries go by. You could, like, feel the history of the place. Every morning, the windows would open up to this view of rolling hills and, well, little terracotta rooftops. You just couldn’t help but feel inspired. It’s one thing to learn about perspective in a textbook; it’s a completely different thing to be sitting on a sun-warmed step, trying to capture the real lines of a cobblestone street that curves away from you. The entire atmosphere was basically designed to get you out of your head and into the moment. It was very easy to let go of that feeling that you ‘can’t do it’ when you’re surrounded by so much genuine beauty and, frankly, so much gentle support from everyone around you. At the end of the day, that support system is what makes or breaks these things for people who are just starting out and feeling a little unsure.

The Center of It All: Learning to Actually See and Sketch

Okay, so let’s talk about the drawing part. This, for me, was actually the most intimidating piece of the puzzle. My sketchbook at home was, basically, full of half-finished, smudged attempts. The instructors, however, started us off in a really smart way. It wasn’t about creating a perfect picture right away. Instead, it was all about, you know, seeing. We did these really simple exercises first. For example, just drawing the shape of the space *between* objects, not the objects themselves. It’s a bit of a weird head-trick, but, well, it works. It sort of forces your brain to stop labeling things and just to start noticing shapes and lines for what they are. You find yourself looking at a simple chair and, like, really observing the angles and curves for the first time. We spent a lot of time on what they called “visual note-taking,” which is just a nice way of saying quick, loose sketches to capture a feeling or a moment. It could be the way a cat was sleeping on a windowsill or the pattern on a piece of pottery. Seriously, this approach made drawing feel so much less scary.

You know, the biggest lesson wasn’t about holding the pencil correctly. It was, well, about giving yourself permission to just make a mark on the page without worrying if it was ‘good’. Just letting your hand follow your eye. That was sort of freeing, actually.

After those initial warm-ups, we slowly started working on bigger scenes. Like, we’d find a nice spot in a local square or a quiet garden. The guide would then sort of walk us through how to approach it. Things like, where to start your drawing, and how to create a feeling of distance. I mean, they gave us practical advice on perspective and composition, of course, but it was never, like, rigid or overly technical. It was more about suggestions. “Why don’t you try making those lines in the background a little lighter?” or “What if you just focus on this one interesting doorway instead of the whole building?” This way of teaching just felt really personal and helpful. It was pretty much tailored to where each of us was in our own learning process. There was this one afternoon I was really struggling with sketching an old, twisty olive tree. The trunk had so many bumps and shadows, you know? The instructor came over, sat with me for a bit, and instead of fixing my drawing, she just talked to me about the life of the tree. It really helped me see it not as a difficult subject, but as a character with a story. That little shift in thinking made all the difference, honestly. Discovering tips like that is a big reason to go; it’s a thing you can’t quite get from a book.

Jumping into Color: The Watercolor Side of Things

Alright, moving on to the watercolors. If drawing was intimidating, well, watercolor was kind of a mystery to me. You know, it’s that one medium that seems to have a mind of its own. It’s all about water and pigment, and sometimes, it just does what it wants. But the way they introduced us to it was, again, just really gentle and fun. We didn’t start by trying to paint a complex landscape. First, we just played with the colors. We learned how to make a simple wash of color, how to let two colors bleed into each other on the paper, and how to lift color off with a dry brush to create light. It was very playful, actually. It felt a lot like being a kid again, just messing around with paint and seeing what happens. There was absolutely no pressure to make something look realistic. At the end of the day, that approach is pretty much the key to not getting frustrated and giving up before you even really start.

Then, we started to apply those little color experiments to our sketches. This was honestly a magical moment for me. Taking a simple pencil drawing of, like, a flowerpot and then adding a splash of terracotta red and a deep green for the leaves… well, it just brings the whole thing to life. The instructors were always there to help, of course. They’d show us how to mix a color to match the sky, or how to use a darker tone to create a shadow that makes an object feel solid and real. One of the biggest things I learned was that you don’t need a million different colors. We worked with a fairly limited palette of paints, but they taught us how to mix them to create literally any color we could see. That was so empowering, you know? It made me realize that all those huge, expensive paint sets aren’t really necessary. You just need to understand how the basic colors work together. Seeing my own little painting of a harbor, with the wobbly reflections in the water, was just an incredibly satisfying feeling, something you’ll probably remember for a very long time.

Past the Easel: Living a Creative Kind of Life

I mean, the workshop was about drawing and painting, obviously. But it was also about so much more. Our days weren’t just a nonstop session of art. There was, like, a real rhythm to the week that gave us space to breathe and just exist in these really beautiful surroundings. The food, for instance, was a huge part of the experience. Every meal felt like a little event. We would eat fresh bread, local cheeses, and ripe tomatoes that actually tasted like sunshine. These meals were a time for us to just chat, you know, not just about art, but about life and our travels and everything else. It’s funny how quickly you can form connections with people when you’re sharing an experience like this. We were all from different places, with different stories, but we had this one, shared purpose, and that creates a really special bond. You really should explore the benefits of a group trip; it’s pretty surprising how enriching it can be.

And then there was the exploration. Part of our time was always set aside to just wander. To poke around the little shops in the village, or to take a walk along a cliff path, or just to find a quiet bench and watch the world go by without any need to draw it. This downtime was so important, actually. It’s when the lessons from the morning sort of settled in. You’d find yourself noticing things in a new way, even without a sketchbook in your hand. Like, the texture of a wooden door, or the gradient of colors in the evening sky. You were sort of absorbing the creative energy of the place itself. It’s a very holistic approach, really. It’s the idea that creativity isn’t something you just turn on from 9 to 5. It’s about how you live and how you observe the world around you all the time. To be honest, this was a massive takeaway for me, learning how to carry that sense of awareness back home with me. I still find myself looking at things differently now, seeing potential pictures everywhere. It’s a lasting gift that you will value, a lot like the art you bring home.

So, Was It Genuinely Worth the Time and Money?

So, the big question, right? Is something like this actually a good idea for you? Well, I can’t answer for everyone, of course. But here’s what I think. If you are a person who has always felt a little spark of a desire to create something with your hands, then absolutely. This kind of workshop is pretty much perfect for beginners or for people who are feeling a bit stuck in their creative practice and just need a fresh start. You don’t need to have any so-called ‘talent’. You really just need to bring an open mind and a willingness to try. It’s less about becoming a professional painter in a week and more about, you know, unlocking a new way of interacting with the world. You’ll leave with a sketchbook full of memories, and, more importantly, with the confidence to keep going. I mean, my drawings still aren’t perfect, not by a long shot, but now I don’t care about that. I just enjoy the act of doing it, which is a huge shift. And this sort of thing is an experience that you pay for; a good workshop is honestly about the entire experience.

On the other hand, if you’re already a very experienced artist looking for, like, advanced technical instruction, this particular workshop might feel a little basic for you. Its strength is definitely in its nurturing, foundational approach. It’s about building confidence and teaching the joy of the process itself. But for anyone who feels that pull, that little ‘what if?’, I honestly can’t recommend the experience enough. You are not just paying for art lessons. You are, in a way, investing in a new perspective. You are giving yourself the gift of time, beauty, and connection, with both a new skill and with other like-minded people. I came home with a couple of clumsy but beloved watercolor paintings, a new set of friends, and, well, a completely renewed sense of wonder. And to me, that’s pretty much priceless. It’s a feeling I think a lot of us are searching for, and for me, I found a little piece of it there, with a pencil in my hand and a lovely view in front of me.