Verrocchio 2026
Abstraction in Tuscany – An Artist Retreat
July 15th to 29th 2026
We will have two weeks together, staying at Verrocchio Centro D’Arte, giving us an ideal amount of time to relax, enjoy an Italian pace of life and immerse ourselves into a unique, special fortnight of concentrating on our own artistic practice.
Casole D’Elsa
A perfect little hilltop town, with mix of ancient sights and local shops and real Italian life. Abundant views, vineyards, walks, and small churches. Small narrow streets, a museum, hardware shop, cafes and quiet spaces to sit and think or draw. Verrocchio Centro is located on the edge of the village, originally a Frantolio mill, and it oozes charm and quirky nooks to explore. The centre has large airy studios and a lecture theatre. Verrocchio if full of Nigel’s sculptures, and you will find them all around the village too as he was very much a main artistic figure in Casole life. The town has a municipal open air pool and café which is approximately 6 euros per swim, and there is even a Roman Style plunge pool in the basement of the Verrocchio building, a refreshing moment!
In 2026 I have decided to slightly change the way I am running my Abstraction in Tuscany course. We will have two weeks, staying together at Verrocchio Centro D’Arte, and the emphasis will be on working on your own pre confirmed project, with 3 tutor contact sessions. There are a maximum of 8 people in the group.
What is included
An initial day of presenting, discussing, planning and starting our projects, making
sure we all set off on the right path.
A halfway through 1-1 tutorial to check in and expand what we have already started.
A final group appraisal and small exhibition of our findings throughout the fortnight.
Some art equipment - a suggested list of what you can bring will be send out.
Studio space.
Extras
Flights to and from Pisa - I will suggest Easyjet flights from Gatwick so I can coordinate shared taxi airport transfers, each way. This has worked out well in the past.
Outward - Wednesday 15 th July 2026 EZY8315 from Gatwick dep 05.55am arrives Pisa 9.10am
Return - Wednesday 29 th July 2026 EZY8316 from Pisa 9.50am arrives Gatwick 11.05am
Airport Transfer Taxi – once the flights have been booked please let me know if you require an airport taxi, door to door, I will book these at the same time as the trip days.
If you prefer to make your own way to Verrocchio please let me know.
Trips – Suggested day trips to Volterra and Badia Di Passegnano, www.badiaapassignano.it There is a lovely Monastery in the little village, and we will have lunch with views of the hills. Please let me know if you would like to take part in these day trips, and you are of course welcome to organise your own visits to places if you wish. There is also a bus to Colle Market on Friday morning, with lovely shopping opportunities. It will be an early start and return at 11ish, and the return bus tickets are approximately 8 euros.
Food – I will employ Loredana our chef for ten of the evening’s dinners, and we will eat out in the village other evenings, giving us the opportunity to try out different local restaurants. Loredana’s dinners will alternate 25 euro and 35 euro menus. Please can you let me know if you have any dietary requirements. We will be DIY for our breakfasts and lunches, and there are usually lots of tasty “leftovers” from the night before. There are lots of choices of cafes etc in the village, two small supermarkets, use of the main kitchen, and use of the terrace for alfresco dining. We will set up a helping out rota between us for serving and clearing plates and dishwasher duties during our stay.
Wine – I will supply some local Red and White wine with each “at home” meal. If we run out we can start a drinks kitty, it all depends on how thirsty we are!
Accommodation
We will have soul use of the whole building throughout our stay, there are 9 rooms, most ensuite, more details can be found on www.verrocchio.co.uk Rooms are allocated on a first come first served basis. Rooms are booked with Hannah, just email info@verrocchio.co.uk
My fee is £550 with a non-refundable deposit of £100 to be paid on booking. I strongly advise taking out holiday insurance for this period. Please email me for any further details lizhough@email.com
I look forward to hearing from you.
Liz
