After twelve years in New York, Victoria moved to Rome and started designing under her own name.

Over the years, Victoria’s artwork has featured on a variety of beautiful products for a range of well-known clients, including Anthropologie, Gap, Hallmark, Papyrus and Windham Fabrics.

With her popular Create Explore online art and design courses, Victoria distils her 24 years of experience into powerful lessons that motivate and inspire artists to create attention-grabbing commercial artwork in their own way.

Victoria teaches her students to value their taste and understand what makes them unique. "I encourage them to be themselves, trust their judgement and create their best work…with confidence."

For more information, visit Victoria Johnson's website or follow her on Instagram @victoriajohnsondesign.

Activities will include:

• Participate in painting workshops with Victoria and develop your unique creative skills

• Enjoy daily delicious meals prepared with fresh products and care by chef Mathieu and Maria

• Take strolls around unbeaten paths in the beautiful nature of Provence through the hills overlooking the old town

• Visit the littoral, the islands, and its breath-taking creeks

• We will take you through the alleys of the historic center of Hyères, this magic city where numerous writers and painters have come to find inspiration since the dawn of time. Artists such as Edith Warton, RL Stevenson, Noailles, Picasso, and Jean Cocteau amongst others, contributed in their time to shaping the rich art heritage of Hyères

• Visit our coloured markets, discover and taste Provençal specialties

• 6 Nights / 5 Days

• 6 to 8 participants

• We ask for a 30% non-refundable deposit of full booking upon reservation and the remaining at the latest on April 26th 2024

What is included?

• 6 nights accommodation

• 6 gourmet dinners & wine

• Daily delicious breakfasts and lunches or picnic

• Cooking & Baking workshops

• Visits, including transportation

• Aperitifs and snacks

Not included

• Airfares to France

• Airport transfer

• MANDATORY travel insurance (participants should suscribe to a travel insurance that covers the balance paid to Simple Life in Provence and book “flexible” flight tickets with cancellation options)

You’ll look at colour, composition and techniques and how to approach them creatively, in your own way, with a focus on the process rather than the outcome. Victoria will demonstrate a wide variety of materials and show you how to be explorative and experimental, letting go of the fear of making mistakes. Whether you’re a beginner or an advanced level artist, you’ll develop the confidence and skills to creatively loosen up, be more spontaneous, and let go of self-doubt by the end of the week.

Friday: Check in and welcome aperitif
You, Victoria and your fellow guests will meet over a relaxing aperitif and start to get to know each other.

Saturday: Market and Gardens
You’ll spend the morning visiting a typical Provence market and walking through luxuriant gardens. In the afternoon, you will enjoy a sketching session by the pool with Victoria.

Sunday: Painting at the villa
Victoria will outline the programme for the week and introduce herself and her work. She’ll show you her paintings, talk about the different techniques and how to combine them, then discuss how to draw from your surroundings and unearth a unique style. You’ll be provided with a huge array of gorgeous flowers, chosen by Victoria, as inspiration. You’ll enjoy a demo from Victoria, where she uses watercolour paper and a variety of media, then she’ll encourage you to try quick, easy and fun warm up exercises that gently introduce you to collage and mixed media techniques, working towards creating a finished pieces of floral artwork by the end of the week. Victoria will be on hand, offering support and advice as you work.

Monday: Boat ride and picnic
You’ll spend the morning taking a boat ride to Porquerolles, visiting the island on a bicycle, followed by a picnic at the “silver beach”. You’ll spend the afternoon hopping around the different creeks of the islands, swimming and relaxing.

Tuesday: Painting at the villa
You’ll enjoy another demo from Victoria, followed by a day spent practising a variety of floral painting techniques, focusing on colour, composition, texture and mixing media. Victoria will show you how to work with the process in mind rather than the outcome, and how this leads to exciting discoveries that start to define your style. Feel free to ask as many questions as you like about art and the business of art as Victoria will be more than happy to share her experiences with you.

Wednesday: Cooking workshop and painting at the villa
You’ll spend the morning learning how to cook from the village ladies, followed by lunch, sampling the typical dishes made during the workshop. You’ll spend the afternoon relaxing and finishing up your paintings. In the early evening you’ll enjoy an aperitif while viewing the week’s work presented together in a mini exhibition.

Friday

3:00 pm: Check-in and welcome aperitif

7:00 pm: Welcome Provençal dinner

Saturday

8:00 am: Delicious breakfast

9:00 am: Visit a typical market in Provence

1:00 pm: Summer buffet at the villa

3:00 pm: Sketching by the pool with Victoria

6:00 pm: Drinks and dinner

Sunday

9:00 am: Delicious breakfast

10:00 am: Workshop with Victoria

1:00 pm: Lunch at the villa

3:00 pm: Workshop with Victoria

6:00 pm: Summer Picnic at Almanarre beach

Monday

8:00 am: Delicious breakfast

9:00 am: Boat ride to Porquerolles. Visit of the island walking or biking

1:00 pm: Picnic at the “silver beach”

2:00 pm: Hop around the different coves of the islands, swim, relax time

5:00 pm: Boat ride back to Hyères. Down time at the villa

7:00 pm: Summer provençal dinner

Tuesday

9:00 am: Delicious breakfast

10:00 am: Workshop with Victoria

1:00 pm: Lunch at the villa

4:00 pm: Visit of a renowned vineyard / Wine tasting

7:00 pm: Summer provençal dinner

Wednesday

8:00 am: Delicious breakfast

9:00 am: Provençal cooking workshop with the ladies from the village

12:00 pm: Lunch all together; enjoy the typical dishes we made together

3:00 pm: Workshop with Victoria

7:00 pm: Aperitif with mini exhibition of the week’s work then dinner prepared by the chef

Thursday

9:00 am: Delicious breakfast and chill time

11:00 am: Check out and goodbyes

Depending on weather, activities might be switched around