Campagna

Vita brevis, Ars Longa CARPE DIEM! Ora fugit.

*Course Description - The Roman Campagna: Historical Itinerary (Civita Castellana, Lazio)*
	The countryside surrounding Rome, the “Campagna Romana”, has the distinction of being the birthplace of open air painting. During the 18^th century, spurred by Enlightenment empiricism to confront nature directly and romantic associations of the grandeur of classical antiquity, artists from all over the world flocked to the “Campagna” to record their experience in paint. The maturation of this tradition was evidenced by the emergence of specific painting itineraries by 1800 that were followed religiously.
The Roman Campagna workshop will feature the motifs of the Northern Rome itinerary. Our base will be the town of Civita Castellana, known in antiquity as "Falerii Veteres", the home of the early Italic people, the Faliscans, and later immortalized in the 19th century paintings of J.B.C. Corot. The list of artists who worked in Civita Castellana is long and includes such names as Thomas Jones, P.H. Valenciennes, and J.M.W. Turner.
	Our focus will be sites such as Mount Soracte, the gorges of Civita Castellana and the Tiber Valley. These sites are compelling not solely from an historical perspective. The land morphology is very dramatic and past participants have found it to be very inspiring and challenging.
The one week class will consist of 2 painting sessions per day. Locations will change regularly. Evening slide lectures will reinforce the thematic content and provide the historical background for painting excursions. There will be no formal instruction during the day. For this reason the program is open to experienced painters only. At the conclusion of each day there will be a review of student work.
	Fees include workshop, accommodation, meals, most materials and equipment, 1 field trip (apart from painting excursions), local transport to and from bus/train stations in Civita Castellana.
Group Limit: 12 painters plus any non-painters accompanying them.