Local artist to lead sketching holiday in Umbria next May

Local artist Rosemary Connelly will be taking a group of artists to Umbria for 10 days of sketching, touring, and enjoying good food and wine while visiting places she knows well.

Connelly lived in Italy with her late husband, photographer Bob Connelly, where they painted and photographed daily, and experienced life in four different regions. Her recently published memoir, “Two Years in Italy,” chronicles those years.

Since Bob died in 2015, Rosemary has not returned to Italy, but she is now ready to go and wants to bring along other artists to experience a bit of what she did while living there. She has planned, along with Village Vacations in Italy, for 10 to 12 artists to stay in a gorgeous Umbrian villa where breakfast and dinner will be enjoyed together. Transportation to and from Rome airport will be provided along with transport to villages and towns for daily sketching and sightseeing opportunities. Her philosophy is slow travel, unpack once, and no rush; the idea is to enjoy each village they visit with time to savor an espresso in a sunlit piazza, and wine and sharing at the end of each day.

Attending a medieval festival in Assisi, watching pottery being made in Deruta, visiting a traditional hand-weaving workshop with 19th century looms in a 13th century Franciscan monastery in Perugia, and more are planned. Located just south of Tuscany, Umbria is called the green heart of Italy because of the lushness of its landscape and its location in the center of Italy’s boot.

For details, contact Rosemary Connelly at rosemary@connelly.net or 302-359-5534 and go to livecheapmakeart.com and villagevacationsinitaly.com.