Take a day out to soak in the peaceful and refreshing energy on top of the hill where this village is founded. You’ll enjoy a day of friendship and creativity. Learn or improve your technique and try your hand at capturing the essence of nature under your art instructor’s guidance.

The setting

In modern times, Mougins has been frequented and inhabited by many artists and celebrities, including Pablo Picasso, Jean Cocteau, Fernand Léger, Francis Picabia, Man Ray, Arman, Elizabeth von Arnim, Yves Klein, César Baldaccini, Paul Éluard, Yves Saint Laurent, Christian Dior, Winston Churchill, Catherine Deneuve, Édith Piaf, Jacques Brel, and others. Pablo Picasso spent the last 12 years of his life living in Mougins (1961–1973), where he died and lived in a 'mas' (farmhouse) at Notre-Dame-de-Vie, which is a small hilltop just beside the old village of Mougins and next to the 12th-century chapel of the same name. Picasso's studio was in the old village in a building that is now the tourist office, while the studio of Fernand Léger was above what is now the village wine shop, next to the rear of the Mougins Museum of Classical Art (MACM).

Mougins has a strong culinary history with such great chefs as Roger Vergé and Alain Ducasse having managed restaurants in the village. Both were synonymous with the restaurant L'Amandier, which is situated in the heart of the old village. This restaurant still exists today and is housed in an important ancient building, as during the Middle Ages this was the court house of the Monks of Saint Honorat, before becoming an almond mill in the 18th/19th centuries. Denis Fetisson], who received the Jacquart Trophy for the Rising Star in Gastronomy in 2006, now manages L'Amandier and is also the manager and head chef at La Place de Mougins (previously Le Feu Follet, regularly frequented by Picasso).

Your day

Morning sketching in the little and back alleys of Mougins

Your art instructor will help you capture lines of roofs, fountains and colours of houses through sketching and watercolour painting. By lunchtime, your travelling notepad - “travelogue” - will be full of the mornings’ drawings, your memories on paper forever…

Lunch

Chat art, architecture and anything else over a delicious Provençal picnic lunch, freshly prepared using local products: cheeses, delicatessen, quiche, tapenade and regional wine or cider.

An afternoon visit of La Mouissone

After lunch, you will be taken on a private guided tour of the gardens by our host, Cyril. He will share with you all the secrets of La Mouissone and his passion for gardening.

Practical information

When and where to meet

9.45am , La Place de Mougins

What to bring

Comfortable shoes… and that’s it! All equipment for sketching and painting will be provided - sketching paper, travelling notepad, pencils, watercolours, brushes, etc.

Language

The sketching workshop will be held in French, a great occasion to practice or improve your conversational skills! Art is a universal language anyway and Adela will be there to assist with any translation if required. 

Suitable for

Lovers of art, nature and all things creative.  No painting experience required, our friendly instructor Dominique will guide you every step of the way! 

What´s included

3 hours sketching and watercolour session

Provencal Picnic Lunch – please advise of any dietary requirement

1 hrs Guided tour around village

Join us! We keep our groups small for a personalised experience, space is limited to 8.

Cost: 95€

RSVP by 10th March 

Don’t hesitate to contact us with any questions, we’re looking forward to seeing you there!