ART

Whitehouse Studio Painting Holidays, Tarbert, Argyll

The promise of never being far from the sea provides the inspiration on these courses, at the home of artist Karen Beauchamp on the west coast of Scotland. Beauchamp, who was previously a wallpaper designer with Cole and Son, offers three- and five-day residential courses that mix location and studio-based sessions. Tuition is in two three-hour sessions per day, with a break for a buffet, picnic or cafe lunch. There is also time for talks and discussions, and the occasional musical evening after a hard day’s painting. Some art materials are supplied – such as drawing boards and easels – but guests are advised to bring their preferred tools and equipment with them. Upcoming courses include September’s Colour and Form in the Landscape with Jane Human.
• Three-day course £595 based on two sharing, £100 single supplement; five-day course £895 sharing, £150 single supplement. 01880 730287, whitehouseart.co.uk

Brambles Art Retreat, Lifton, Devon

At their beautiful 17th-century cottage – only 10 miles from the edges of Dartmoor national park – tutors Peter Davies and Janet Brady offer art holidays for beginners, improvers and experienced artists. The versatile tutors work with in watercolour, oil, acrylic, drawing, life drawing or mixed media and tailor breaks to suit guests’ tastes. Small group sizes mean there is plenty of one-to-one tuition, while the holiday options available are: the weekender (Friday evening to Sunday afternoon) or a five-day course (Sunday evening to Friday afternoon). Though courses often start with work in the tutors’ studio and nearby locations it can, and often does, extend to scenic spots around the area. Brambles Art Retreat also runs art breaks abroad to Venice, Greece, Morocco and India.
• Five-day UK course from £625, weekender from £320, both full board. 01566 784359, bramblesartretreat.com

Norfolk Painting School, North Creake, Norfolk

A working studio and gallery, as well as a centre that caters for all ability levels, this is a specialist oil painting school where the emphasis is on traditional skills. The school was established in 2006 by Martin and Jane Kinnear in the village of North Creake, three miles from Burnham Market. Martin does the majority of the teaching on the two- three-, four- and five-day courses, which include Simply Oils, Impressionist Oils, Light and Atmosphere, and a Glazing Workshop. There’s also a Returner’s Course and the school even offers its own one-year diploma course. All the materials you need are supplied and group numbers are limited to 10. Accommodation costs extra but the choice on offer is wide, featuring self-catering suites (from £55 a night) and B&Bs (from £60).
• Two-day Beginner’s Oils course £275; three-day Light and Atmosphere £425. 01328 730203, norfolkpaintingschool.com

St Ives School of Painting, Cornwall

This part of Cornwall has long bewitched the UK’s leading artists; its atmospheric light and beautiful surroundings inspiring artists including Ben Nicholson, Barbara Hepworth, Henrietta Dubrey and Luke Frost to create some of their best work. The St Ives School of Painting is itself part of that legacy, having opened in 1938 under the auspices of two first world war officers who had studied art, Borlase Smart and Leonard Fuller. There are 20 tutors linked to the school, whose studio is a Grade II-listed property on the edge of Porthmeor Beach, and the extensive list of courses – for both new and experienced artists – covers oil, mixed media, water-based, drawing and printmaking. Special course categories include St Ives Modernists, Beginners and Marine Landscape, while 2015 has seen the introduction of Creative Weekender, a new two-day (Sat-Sun) course restricted to eight students with a different focus each month.
• Lodging is not provided but the website features links to a range of accommodation. Creative Weekend £165, three-day courses from £235 (all art materials are provided). 01736 797180, schoolofpainting.co.uk

Learn to paint with Dermot Cavanagh, County Tyrone

Artist Dermot Cavanagh’s extensive selection of art breaks and workshops includes one-day courses around the UK, as well as longer excursions to France and Croatia. However, he also has a three-day painting course at National Trust property The Argory, in Moy, County Tyrone. Artists of all levels are welcome, and are offered tuition in colour mixing, perspective and “washes” during sessions that run from 9.30 to 4.30. The courses run year round, so the changing seasons give artists different perspectives of the estate grounds of a property that dates back to the 1820s. Flights to Belfast and accommodation are not provided but can be organised; B&B stays cost from £40 a night.
• Three-day course £199 (all painting materials provided). 028 87 784166, learntopaintwithdermotcavanagh.com

WRITING

Arvon Foundation: Shropshire, West Yorkshire, Devon

Across courses that cover fiction, non-fiction, poetry, screenwriting and radio drama, Arvon offers new and developing writers a beautiful escape to learn their craft. The organisation was set up in 1968 by poets John Moat and John Fairfax and offers five-day residential retreats at three atmospheric English centres: Ted Hughes’ former home Lumb Bank, near Hebden Bridge; Totleigh Barton in Devon and The Hurst, in Shropshire – the former home of playwright John Osborne. The focus of the retreats is on improving skills, so accommodation (some shared) is simple rather than plush and there is no TV – or Wi-Fi. Morning workshop sessions with tutors provide the chance to learn and practise, while afternoons mean free time for writing, reading or walks in the countryside. There is an appearance from a guest writer during the week for added inspiration, along with tutorials to get feedback on work. Arvon is developing a new retreat centre at The Hurst – in addition to the existing centre – specifically for writers coming on their own for writing time; it is set to open in 2016.
• Courses usually run Mon-Sat, single rooms £725, shared room £680. Grants are available for those on low incomes to help with course fees. 020 7324 2554, arvon.org

Creative Thursday, crime writing festival, Harrogate, North Yorkshire

Fans of crime fiction who fancy wielding a dagger or developing a detective who can out-twirl Hercule Poirot, can hone their skills at this one-day course at the Old Swan Hotel in Harrogate. The hotel has previous when it comes to crime writing: it was where Agatha Christie went during her famous “disappearance” in 1926 and it also hosts the three-day crime writing festival, which starts the following day; the 2015 event (16-19 July) is chaired by Ann Cleeves and guests will include Lee Child, Sally Wainwright and Val McDermid. This year, Creative Thursday will focus on scriptwriting, with workshops and seminars helmed by TV and radio writers and producers. And Gaby Chiappe, who has adapted Ann Cleeves’ Vera and Shetland for TV, will host a writing-for-radio session and an insight into how TV crime drama differs from written crime fiction.
• Thursday 16 July, 9am-5.30pm, £99pp. A range of accommodation packages are available, which include festival tickets. 01423 562 303, harrogateinternationalfestivals.com

Tŷ Newydd Writing Centre, Llanystumdwy, Llŷn peninsula

If views over Snowdonia and Cardigan Bay, or walks in the woodland nearby, aren’t enough to inspire, perhaps the history behind this writing centre may do the trick. Tŷ Newydd is a 16th-century, Grade II-listed property and home of former prime minister David Lloyd George – who commissioned the architect of Portmeirion, Clough Williams-Ellis, to make alterations to it. The centre, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary, offers a mix of taught residential courses (weekend and week-long) as well as retreats without tutors where the focus is solely on writing. There are courses to suit all levels of experience and group sizes are usually no larger than 16. Although there is a focus on poetry, the centre has courses on novel writing, women’s popular fiction and nature/wildlife/health writing. In November it will host a poetry masterclass by the national poet of Wales Gillian Clarke and poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy.
• Week-long courses £575 single room, £475 shared room; retreats £415 (prices may vary). The centre has a limited number of bursaries for those on low incomes on a case-by-case basis. 01766 522 811, tynewydd.org

Moniack Mhor, the Highlands

The storytelling tradition is alive and well at Scotland’s Creative Writing Centre thanks, in part, to its Community Garden Project. The acre of land that surrounds the buildings of Moniack Mhor was developed in 2013 to include a giant alpine rockery, stone patio, herb garden and a dry-stone storytelling circle “for the sharing of words under a moonlit sky”. The centre has been residential courses for over 20 years – either week-long or three-night stays, tutored by high-profile writers and attended by guest speakers. For the remainder of 2015 Moniack Mhor, which is south-west of Inverness, offers fiction, non-fiction, poetry, playwriting and travel writing courses. However, early September also offers a thriller-writing course, tutored by Peter Robinson and Morag Joss and with the don of tartan noir William McIlvanney as a guest speaker. Anyone keen to unleash their inner Hilary Mantel might enjoy the historical fiction course, from 7-12 September.
• Week-long courses £550 single room, £490 shared room; three-night courses £375 single room, £325 shared room. Grants for those on low incomes can be applied for and there are also grants for primary and secondary school teachers. 01463 741675, moniackmhor.org.uk

Urban Writers’ Retreat, London and Devon

Some aspiring writers just want a space to write in and the time to do it rather than workshops, seminars and tutorial. That’s where Urban Writers’ Retreat comes in. It has three- and six-day retreats to a country house in the wilds of Devon – or rather, about 20 minutes’ drive from Newton Abbott. Here, in your own room (en suite doubles, doubles and singles are available), or sharing if you prefer, it’s possible to work in peace and quiet. As well as the company of fellow writers (up to a maximum of nine), Charlie, who runs Urban Writers’ Retreat, is on hand with “tea and empathy” where necessary. If time and finances are even more pressing, one-day London retreats in groups of 10-20 are also available for £45pp including lunch.
• Three-day stays from £255, six-day stays from £460. urbanwritersretreat.co.uk