Barbara Danser
Workshops
Contact me for my upcoming classes in the Monadnock area.
Click below to view my upcoming 2024 workshops:
Taos, Chimayo, Ghost Ranch & Santa Fe, New Mexico
NEW MEXICO PLEIN AIR PAINTING WORKSHOP
Taos, Chimayo,
Ghost Ranch & Santa Fe
with Barbara Danser
2024 schedule to be determined
TAOS
The historic town of Taos, nestled at the base of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains in New Mexico, will be the central location for the beginning of our workshop, featuring in-town adobe and garden sites as well as excursions into the a landscape of golden Aspens and Cottonwoods, blue Sage, snow capped mountains and the Rio Grande Gorge.
Every morning we will depart to a landscape site to paint. We will visit the Taos Pueblo, O’Keeffe’s famous San Francisco de Asis Church, art museums, galleries and view the work by members of the famous Taos Artists Colony.
While in Taos we will be staying at the historic Mabel Dodge Luhan House, where Georgia O’Keeffe, Willa Cather, John Marin, D. H. Lawrence, Thornton Wilder, Spud Johnson, Marsden Hartley and other avant-garde artists and writers lived from the 1920’s on.
During the evening, we will gather in the Library, and each of us will have the opportunity to share a topic of choice with the group.
CHIMAYO
Home to the famous and historic El Santuario, where pilgrims come from all over the world to partake of the local healing earth, Chimayo is nestled in a vibrant countryside of unusual coralcolored rocks and dunes. Located at the base of “The High Road to Taos”, it is central spot for painting historic mountain villages and a different section of the Sangre de Cristo mountain range. The special earth of Chimayo nourishes the finest red and green chilies in all of the US. These chilies are sold in the outdoor markets. We will stay at the historic Rancho de Chimayo.
GHOST RANCH
Set among the magnificent cliffs and canyons of Ghost Ranch, located north of Santa Fe, this art workshop will encourage artists to explore their inherent creativity in the landscape and to interact freely with nature or subject, using individual expression and style. This is Georgia O’Keeffe country: cottonwood trees ablaze in gold, blue Sage and yellow Tamarisk flowering beneath towering red, gold, white and violet rock formations, canyons with gently flowing rivers, Georgia’s flat-topped Pedernal mountain in the distance and no noise but that of Mother Nature.
This palette of vibrant colors and the simplicity of nature’s song will set the tone for our work. Following breakfast, we will gather to share a morning celebration, welcoming the new day.
Every morning and afternoon we will depart by car to a location within the 17,000 acres of Ghost Ranch, to nearby Echo Canyon, Georgia O’Keeffe’s “White Place” and into the canyons of the Rio Chama to the remote Monastery of Christ in the Desert. Group topics will include all aspects of painting in the landscape, the colors and light of the Southwest and Nature painted from within.
We will be staying in our private hacienda, the beautiful Casa del Sol, at Ghost Ranch. Every evening throughout our stay we will congregate in the Casa del Sol lounge or out on the terrace under the stars. Here we will relax and recap the day, sharing our work and thoughts.
SANTA FE
Santa Fe is the historic and cultural center of New Mexico. Founded by Spanish Colonists in 1610, it is the oldest city in New Mexico and oldest State Capitol in the USA.
Located at the foot of the Sangre de Cristo mountain range, the city is occupied by descendents of three cultures: Indigenous Pueblo Nations, the early Hispanics and the later Gringos. Artists and writers have resided in Santa Fe since the early 1900s.
During our stay in this vibrant, cultural and creative environment, we will paint both the landscape and cityscape, driving into the mountains to paint ridges bursting with golden Aspens and exploring the narrow streets of the town and historic Plaza. We will visit museums, such as the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, and numerous art galleries. Artists in the Indian Market set up their turquoise and silver jewelry and ceramics every morning in front of the ancient Palace of the Governors on the Plaza.
We will be staying at the 4-Star Hotel St Francis, located two blocks from the Plaza in the historic center of Old Santa Fe. We will depart after breakfast to landscape locations for painting in the mornings. Afternoons will find us painting at other locations or visiting Santa Fe museums, the famous spiral staircase at the Loretto Chapel, the contemporary galleries at the Rail Yard or strolling historic Canyon Rd. Evenings will be spent exploring the streets near the Plaza to discover wonderful restaurants and shops. Concerts, lectures and performance events fill the town nightly. Creativity, spontaneity, and a constant variety of happenings in Santa Fe energize all who visit there.
10-Day Workshop: Taos, Chimayo & Ghost Ranch
Arrive Taos: to be determined
Depart Ghost Ranch: to be determined
Includes:
Landscape Painting Instruction for 10 days;
All Lodging: double occupancy with private bath;
Breakfast & Lunch in Taos;
Breakfast & Lunch in Chimayo;
Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner at Ghost Ranch.
Cost of 10-Day Workshop: to be determined
14-Day Workshop including Santa Fe
(10-Day Workshop & Santa Fe)
Arrive Taos: to be determined
Depart Santa Fe: to be determined
Includes:
The 10-Day Workshop;
Painting Instruction for 4 additional days;
4 Nights Lodging: double occupancy, private bath
Cost of 14-Day Workshop: to be determined
Pictures from a previous New Mexico Plein Air Workshop
![IMG_5371[2]](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a50565_080cd8af12134a629f4e9bf395f2b95d.jpg/v1/fill/w_147,h_101,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/a50565_080cd8af12134a629f4e9bf395f2b95d.jpg)
![IMG_5367[1] (1)](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a50565_c6987a621bfc4d9288ff9d55ddfece4b.jpg/v1/fill/w_147,h_91,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/a50565_c6987a621bfc4d9288ff9d55ddfece4b.jpg)
![IMG_5230[1] (1)](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a50565_6514b9986092485a9e89edac71880c60.jpg/v1/fill/w_147,h_101,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/a50565_6514b9986092485a9e89edac71880c60.jpg)
![IMG_5206[1] (1)](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a50565_fc1415c13c4a416089edfea4b6ce4b3e.jpg/v1/fill/w_147,h_92,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/a50565_fc1415c13c4a416089edfea4b6ce4b3e.jpg)
![Ellis-IMG_5200[1] (1)](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a50565_d0cf68bfd9274acf833b0bf6b0b38575.jpg/v1/fill/w_70,h_49,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/a50565_d0cf68bfd9274acf833b0bf6b0b38575.jpg)
![Ellis-IMG_5197[1] (1)](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a50565_64ea835a0be148129c659e02e1104f96.jpg/v1/fill/w_73,h_49,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/a50565_64ea835a0be148129c659e02e1104f96.jpg)
THE PLUMED SERPENT
A discussion about D. H. Lawrence
by Mabel Dodge Luhan
. . . All true artists are thus engaged in filling themselves out, and what they produce in doing so we call art. Real art has the man in it, the spirit, the wish, and the courage that spin out of himself those qualities he needs to satisfy the discontent in him, and the artist is the greatest of us all in these divine athletics of self-creation.
SONG OF THE LARK
By Willa Cather
. . . What was any art but a mold in which to imprison for a moment the shining elusive element which is life itself - life hurrying past us and running away, too strong to stop, too sweet to lose.
UTAH
NATIONAL PARKS
PLEIN AIR PAINTING
WORKSHOP
with Barbara Danser
ZION
BRYCE CANYON
GRAND ESCALANTE
CAPITOL REEF
ARCHES & CANYONLANDS
2024 schedule to be determined
Utah’s National Parks, with magnificent geologic formations dressed in hues of red, coral pink, gold and white, will be the itinerary for this workshop exploration of art in the landscape.
Participants at all levels of artistic experience are welcome to join this workshop, to pursue the arts through painting (all media), photography and writing and to interact spontaneously with nature using individual style and expression. Every morning, each person will freely choose how they wish to explore southern Utah's beauty, painting and sketching at selected sites, accessible by car or walking the numerous trails with camera and sketchbook in tow.
Participants at all levels of artistic experience are welcome to join this workshop, to pursue the arts through painting (all media), photography and writing and to interact spontaneously with nature using individual style and expression. Every morning, each person will freely choose how they wish to explore southern Utah's beauty, painting and sketching at selected sites, accessible by car or walking the numerous trails with camera and sketchbook in tow.
Bryce Canyon country is a verdant land of high-plateau Pine forests filled with Aspen groves, capping a vast wonderland of soft coral-colored rock sculptures reaching white spires to the sky and balancing-rock columns, castles and temples of red and gold. Trails meander down 500 feet through the formations, passing through slot canyons into cool hidden places and sunny open spaces or along a river to a waterfall and Mossy Cave. Sunrise and sunset at the rim overlooks are breath-taking.
Zion is noted for its huge monolithic White Cliffs and wind-sculpted mounds of Navajo Sandstone formed over 200 million years and carved out by ancient seas and rivers. Numerous trails climb to the high ridges above; others follow the Virgin River’s edge, surrounded by rock faces nearly 1,800 feet high filled with hanging water gardens; additional trails start at the Narrows and explore a series of slot canyons extending for miles. Entrance to the Park is through the spectacular Pine Creek tunnel built 5,607 feet through solid rock with view windows along route.
Capitol Reef, ablaze with red, gold and white formations of rock dating back in geologic history 800 million years, has an unusual Waterpocket Fold, a wrinkle in the earth’s crust extending the length of the Park. An 1896 one-room school house and the Behunin house, both built by early Mormon settlers, and petroglyphs of the Freemont Indians, dating back to 700 A. D., tell of man’s shorter history in the park.
We will cross the Grand Staircase, Escalante National Monument, on our way to Capital Reef, following scenic Route 12 through cool aspen forests.
Includes:
Two nights at Zion Lodge, private bath; three nights at Bryce Canyon Lodge, private bath; two nights at a Lodge near Capitol Reef in rooms with fireplace, private bath; 2 nights in a Moab hotel, private bath; entrance fees to National parks. All lodging double occupancy.
For more information, send an e-mail to Barbara, using the Contact Us link at the top of the page.
ITALY
PLEIN AIR PAINTING
WORKSHOP
with Barbara Danser
TUSCANY
CINQUE TERRE
VENICE
2024 schedule to be determined
The countryside of Tuscany with Etruscan and medieval hilltop towns and villa estates and the Mediterranean seaside villages of the Cinque Terre region will provide the subject for this fifteen-day workshop.
The first week will be spent in Tuscany with daily trips to Pienza, Montepulciano, San Gimignano and Siena in Tuscany and Todi in Umbria. We will be staying in a magnificent fifteenth century villa with formal gardens and a pool near Cortona. Transportation to selected painting sites will be by car, and all participants will have the daily option of choosing to travel or to remain and paint on the grounds of the villa. In the evening we will have dinner in town or cooked for us at the villa.
The second week will find us in Cinque Terre, painting seascapes and pastel villages built into the steep cliffs overlooking the Mediterranean. Travel between villages will be by train, boat and by foot on the many walking paths. daytrips will include Portofino and St. Margherita Liguria. We will stay in a seventeenth century villa hotel in the heart of Levanto, where we will enjoy a delicious breakfast and multi-course dinner daily in the frescoed dining room, prepared by the house chef and served by the host family.
An optional four-night trip to Venice is offered to all who wish to extend their Italy experience and to paint the canals and night scenes of this historic and romantic city. travel will be by public vaporetti along central canals and to islands, such as charming Murano where Venetian glass is made. Evenings will be spent in local restaurants and on Piazza San Marco sipping a cappuccino and listening to late-night orchestras play in competition with each other.
For more information, send an e-mail to us using the Contact Us link at the top of the page.
