Watercolour Landscapes in Tasmania - 7 days - TASMANIA - OCTOBER 2024 with Chan Dissanayake

Join us for a week where Chan will help you create fresh, bold and lively paintings by injecting and capturing the mood of the glorious Tasmanian wilderness. You will be staying in your very own non-sharing room deep in the hills of remote North East Tasmania where a tiny farming community with a 100 year old hotel lies that is now Artable's Australian retreat base. Amongst the rolling green hills sits a single streetscape untouched by commerce or tourism. Beyond the hills, lies an epic landscape in every direction. The rich orange and turquoise seas of the Bay of Fires, stunningly clear rivers in deep valleys and access to remote painting locations unseen by most visitors. This part of Tasmania will speak to every artist on every level. The hotel has been lovingly restored and curated by Artable founder Gillian who has brought together a decade of award winning retreat experiences to offer artists their non-sharing rooms at no extra charge, a huge light filled art studio, a comfortable group lounge complete with Chesterfields and fireplace, daily excursions to visit carefully selected landscapes and the very best local Tassie fare available. This retreat is for those of you keen to explore mark making in one of Australia's most powerful natural landscapes.

Welcome to Artable's carefully curated Tasmanian space - a quaint 100 year old hotel in the remote north east town of Winnaleah where you enjoy your very own bedroom and bathroom at no extra charge and where we have a full studio complete with everything you need for your art holiday. In addition to studio time, each day brings a new experience…the incredible colours of the Little Blue Lake and the Bay of Fires coastline, local rivers full of sapphires, streetscapes untouched by time and more. There is even Tasmania's famous ‘Floating Sauna’ just down the road for those of you keen to try out the health benefits of a hot sauna and cold lake plunge combo.

Everything is included except your flights and art materials and 1 lunch and 1 dinner. We have made sure that you get a day to travel in and out plus a FULL 5 days in workshop mode with Chan.

Your own beautiful bedroom complete with luxury linens and a plush mattress topper for the best nights sleep. A light filled studio space complete with easels and boards for your use. Transfers between Launceston (airport or city) and the venue are included as well as daily excursions to a variety of landscapes (see the full itinerary link below).

We have painting days with watercolour master Chan Dissanayake to explore the local landscape and to work in studio. This special retreat will suit students who have been exposed to the medium of watercolour and want to extend their knowledge to the next level. We will specifically concentrate on how to inject and capture the mood of the Tasmanian landscape. The truly magical qualities of watercolour can best be demonstrated in portraying atmospheric effects, using wet-in-wet technique. We will paint a variety of subjects, producing two paintings a day from start to finish; each painting will be chosen to demonstrate a certain technique and key learning points. There will be lots of useful discussions as well as tips on how to avoid potential pitfalls.

If you enjoy the challenge of producing loose and bold watercolours, then this is for you.

Chan will be covering:

  • Properties of Colour & Colour Relationships
  • Understanding Light and Shadows
  • Wash and Glazing techniques
  • Secrets of Wet-into-Wet Technique
  • Understanding Timing in Watercolour to create magical effects
  • Tonal Values
  • Planning & Composition

At the end of the week, you should:

Have a greater understanding and appreciation of watercolour medium and its techniques

Be able to plan and approach a subject, then complete a painting with confidence

Learn how to paint variety of subjects with solid technical understanding

Work with the magical properties of watercolour to create mystical effects with effortless ease

Complete a series of fresh, bold, and lively paintings 

At night, we dine by candlelight as our chef prepares Tasmanian fare from locally sourced produce to suit all dietary needs. There are beautiful walks surrounding the hotel to truly experience the beauty of the area before or after class or sink into the Chesterfield couches with a wine or a hot chocolate by the fire instead.

If you are keen to come on your own, don't worry, we have many people that join us on their own. Please note that if you opt for a shared room (twin single beds) you attract a $400 discount. Some rooms are located on the upper level and include stairs, so please contact us if you have mobility issues.

To join us make your $200 non refundable or transferrable deposit via the link to the right. We will be in contact in January to collect the balance. Please note that cancellation fees apply to all Artable retreats as outlined below.

We look forward to welcoming you to a wonderful creative holiday.

ARTABLE RETREAT TERMS & CONDITIONS

ACCOMMODATION

Rooms 1-5 have a King bed and detached ensuite (across the hall), these rooms are located on the ground floor.

Room 7 has 2 x double beds for sharing and ensuite, Rooms 8 & 9 have queen beds with ensuites (room 9 is a detached ensuite), Room 10 has a king bed and ensuite. Rooms 7-10 are all located up a single set of stairs on our top floor.

You can opt for a shared room and enjoy a $400 discount. Please note that there are 4 rooms located upstairs, we allocate rooms based on the order that bookings come in.

All rooms enjoy luxury linens and a plush mattress topper.

MEALS

All melas are included except for one dinner out and a lunch. We draw from our local farmers as well as our region for produce and take pride in our meals. We are very used to catering to a wide range of diets, so please make sure you note any requirements. Please note that alcohol is not included and available for purchase on site. No alcohol is to be brought on location.

CLIMATE

The climate at this time of year can be cool but very pleasant. We will be in Autumn so you are likely to catch the incredible autumn colour.  Please bring warm clothes, evenings are cold and we may do evening excursions.

CLOTHING

Pack painting clothes and casuals. A good waterproof/windproof jacket is great for when the weather changes and you want to do walks outside. Swimwear if you are keen for a cold ocean plunge or if you would like to book the local ‘Floating Sauna’ nearby. We recommend slippers for inside the hotel as some bathrooms are detached. Painters often find that fingerless gloves are wonderful in the cooler climates when working outside.

TRAVEL/TRANSFERS

We pick you up at 3.30pm from the LAUNCESTON AIRPORT or a nearby hotel and return you by 11am on the final day.  If you require accommodation before or after the retreat, you need to have this approved by us for availability and you will be charged $220 per night to be paid before you leave the retreat. We otherwise recommend you book a night in Evandale or the Sebel Launceston. Please note that unfortunately we cannot offer airport transfers in the event that you decide to arrive early or stay longer at the retreat. We drive an hour and half to reach our venue and there a number of hills and turns. Bring travel sick tablets if you are worried about this.

TRAVEL INSURANCE

Travel insurance is highly recommended and is to be organised by you.

ART SESSIONS

Painting sessions are from 9am-4pm or as directed by the artist. The rest of the time is yours to enjoy.

FLIGHTS

Flights are not included and are to be organised by you (LAUNCESTON AIRPORT). Please check our pick up and drop off times.

PAYMENT

A non-refundable and non-transferable $200 deposit is to be made to secure your spot via our website and the reservation form completed.

FULL PAYMENT is due 20 July 2024 - we will send an invoice prior.

Payments are to be made to:

Artable Pty Ltd

Commonwealth Bank of Australia

BSB: 062 643

ACC: 1008 8473

Please use your surname as reference and your invoice number. For example, Smith6471

CANCELLATION/REFUNDS

This trip relies heavily on group numbers. Therefore it is necessary to charge a cancellation fee as outlined below in the event that you decide to cancel. If we decide to cancel the trip at any time we will issue you with a FULL refund. We are not responsible for expenses incurred in the preparation of trips (even cancelled trips), such as airline tickets, travel delays, flight cancellations. There is no refund if you arrive late or decide to leave early. Deposits secure your place and are non-refundable.

In the event that government travel restrictions prevent travel, you will be issued with a credit to be used at any Artable event.

Please note our cancellation dates & that Artable charges a $200 non refundable fee as your deposit.

Cancellation up to 20 July 2024 - $200 non refundable admin fee regardless of reason for cancellation.

Cancellation from 20 July - 20 August 2024 - 50% of trip cost refunded, less $200 non-refundable deposit.

Cancellation from 20 August - 20 October 2024 - No refunds

Please note that our itinerary is a guide only and is subject to changes to accommodate the group and teacher's needs as well as weather considerations. Have a look at our inclusions for a list of what is and isn't included.

Itinerary What's Included

Materials list

To book, email your enquiry using the button below or phone Gillian on 0411 317 606.

$3295 $200 deposit required
Enquire

Meet the Teach

Chan Dissanayake

Chan Dissanayake is a multi-award winning watercolour artist living in Canberra, Australia. He is a highly regarded tutor and a well-respected judge of local and regional art awards. Over the last 15 years his passion has turned to watercolour. A medium that thrives in spontaneous response and free expression. His mastery in watercolour is manifested by the vast varying subject matter that he tackles from rural landscapes, urban city scapes to coastal seascapes. In 2017, Chan received the ultimate accolade for an Australian Watercolourist when he was elected to the elite Australian Watercolour Institute. Known for his innovative approaches to teaching and generosity in sharing his…

More about Chan Dissanayake