ART RETREAT - FRENCH ALPS JUNE 2026
Summer Workshop 2026
Painting Seasonal Alpine Flowers
A week of painting Alpine flowers with Clare Robinson, devoted to the art of watercolour painting in the beautiful French Alps.
Enjoy the cosy comfort of Chalet Mathilde which offers a peaceful retreat right on the slopes of Les Coches. With six en-suite bedrooms, a spacious open-plan lounge and panoramic mountain views, it’s the perfect base for a relaxing and therapeutic art retreat.
What will the week look like:
Once you are unpacked and settled, we invite you to enjoy some tea or coffee and home baking on the terrace where you can relax after your journey.
A welcome dinner on the Monday night and a chance to meet your fellow guests and Clare, your tutor.
On the Tuesday morning after a light breakfast, an introduction and suggested workshop plan for the week. The day will start gently with a short relaxing walk to collect a few alpine flowers, depending on the weather. All flowers however will be provided for the course.
It's a relaxed, informal and organic workshop, firstly exploring sketching with watercolour and use of some mix media, like watercolour pencils, black pen.
Clare will guide you through the steps to illustrate a variety of seasonal flowers and foliage, experimenting with loose-style and wet-in-wet watercolour techniques, wet-in-dry and details, layering, composition, colour mixing and brush work to convey the textures, colours and essence of your flower
Finally reflecting on your work during the week and progressing to creating a beautiful floral painting using loose style watercolour to take home.
Art Classes are every morning after breakfast, 10.00-12.30pm with a light lunch on the terrace from 12.30-1.30pm.
In the afternoon, a creative hour 1.30pm - 2.30pm then plenty of time for gentle forest walks, relax and unwind in the sauna/hot tub and additional yoga/massage is available to book and a trip to local villages if you wish.
All meet for dinner at 7.30pm on Mon/Tues/Wed/Thurs evening.
Dates:
Monday 8th June - Friday 12th June 2026
Workshop - Tues 9th / Wed 10th / Thurs 11th June
Arrival Monday - Depart Friday morning
Limited to 8 participants
£1800- per person in an individual room
£1600 - per person sharing a room
What's included:
4 nights of accommodation in your own room, all rooms are ensuite
3 freshly prepared meals a day. All wine is included with dinner and dietary requirements catered for
Use of private hot tub and sauna.
Daily art classes
What's not:
International flights
Transfer from and to the airport
Travel/Medical Insurance
Personal expenses
Art materials (a materials guide is available)
To book: www.clarerobinson.com
For more info: email: clare@clarerobinson.com call: 07968058297
Location:
Chalet Mathilde, Les Coches, France
https://https://www.ski-lasource.com
FR | +33771221640
UK | +447967 638806
La Source Ski & Adventure Ltd
364 Avenue Centenaire
Bourg Saint Maurice
73700, France
Contact Ski-Lasource for further information for travel, location and collection from the local station.
By Car – Arrive at your own pace
By plane - four great airport options
Chambéry – approx. 1 hour 45 mins
Geneva – approx. 2.5 hours
Lyon – approx. 2.5 hours
Grenoble – approx. 2.5 hours
From each airport, you can continue your journey via car hire, shared shuttle, or private taxi. We’re happy to advise on the best routes and transfer companies depending on your arrival airport and group size.
By Train – eco-friendly service to the foot of the mountain
Taking the train is one of the most popular and environmentally friendly ways to reach the Alps. The nearest station is Landry, just a 15-minute drive from both Montchavin and Les Coches. There are also excellent connections to Aime-la-Plagne and Bourg-Saint-Maurice, which are both around 25–35 minutes away.
From the UK, you can travel via the Eurostar to Paris or Lille, then transfer onto a direct TGV service into the Alps. During ski season, the Eurostar Snow train offers direct services on weekends between London and Bourg-Saint-Maurice.
We recommend booking train travel early during peak weeks. Let us know your arrival time and station in advance—we’ll be happy to assist with arranging a local taxi or private transfer to your chalet.
Driving offers complete flexibility. For larger groups it is often the simplest way to travel from Geneva or Lyon airport.
From Albertville follow signs for Moutiers, then continue onwards towards Landry, (don't follow signs for La Plagne) where you'll begin the scenic climb into the resort. Travel time from Calais is around 9 to 10 hours depending on conditions.
There are 5 private parking spaces at Chalet Mathilde and free outdoor parking close to Chalet Versoye.
