Phil Levine Workshops Inc.


Valeri Larko May 23 - June 3, 2008 (class is filled)
Painting the Villages of Provence (with the last two days in Paris!)

 Valeri Larko has had numerous solo and group exhibitions of her paintings throughout the New York metropolitan area. Notable solo exhibits include The New Jersey State Museum, Trenton, Safe-T-Gallery, Brooklyn, NY, Bronx River Art Center, Art Guild of Rahway, NJ, Johnson and Johnson Corporate Headquarters Gallery, New Brunswick, NJ and the Visual Arts Center of New Jersey, Summit, NJ. Notable group exhibits include The Jersey City Museum, The Morris Museum, The National Academy of Sciences in Washington, DC, Aljira, a center for contemporary Art, Newark NJ, William Paterson University, Wayne, NJ, MB Modern in New York City and the Bruton Street Gallery in London, England.
In the fall of 2000 Valeri Larko was awarded a major mural commission from New Jersey Transit and the New Jersey State Council on the arts for the Secaucus Transfer Station. She painted four murals for their north mezzanine. Completed in August of 2003, the Secaucus Transfer Station is the largest train station in the state of New Jersey. Valeri Larko was awarded another public art commission in 2004 to create two fragmented glass murals for the
city of Summit, NJ.
Educated at the Du Cret School of the Arts, Plainfield, NJ and the Arts Students League, New York City, In 2004, Valeri moved from her long time residence in Summit, NJ to an artist loft building in New Rochelle, New York. Presently she holds the position of Director of the Tomasulo Gallery at Union County College, Cranford, New Jersey, a position she has held since 1996. She is also a painting instructor at the Visual Arts Center of New Jersey, Summit, NJ and teaches international landscape painting

a view in Provence

Valeri will take her class to paint along the Mediterranean and Camargue. We will paint in St Remy itself several days and in some of the officially recognized "Most Beautiful Villages in France" like Lourmarin and Gordes- the village perched high in the Luberon. The lavender fields of l’Abbaye de Sénanque are only 4 km away tucked in its own little valley north of Gordes. In addition, we will visit and paint in Van Gogh's asylum in St. Remy and the tiny village of Eygalieres.

Valeri Larko

 



Valeri Larko


Roussillon in the Luberon

The lovely Gallo-Roman village of St. Remy is on the plains at the northern edge of the mountain range called les Alpilles, 20 km south of Avignon. Residents more recent than the Romans include Dr. Schweitzer, Nostradamus and of course Vincent Van Gogh. The old village of St. Rémy is pretty and picturesque, and protected by the circular 14th-century wall which is lined by its protective circle of buildings.

Vincent van Gogh arrived in Saint Remy de Provence on 8th May 1889. He was driven out of his home in Arles and checked himself into the Saint Paul de Mausole hospital, which is still today an active and functioning asylum. He found the quality of light and the ardent beauty of the landscapes around Saint Remy quite fascinating and completed more than 150 paintings and numerous sketches. One of our painting days will be on the grounds of the asylum where we can visit his room - preserved in it's original state when he was a patient there.

The Saint Remy period is considered to be one of the major periods in the work of Van Gogh. You will be able to visit ( and paint from) the very locations from where he painted some of his greatest masterpieces!

It is in the heart of Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, in a calm neighborhood that the charming hotel "Sous les Figuiers" has its roots. Each of its twelve comfortable rooms has a different theme. Most of them have a terrace and a private garden. The magical fragrance of age old fig trees incites guests to delightful siestas.This hotel is a little place in paradise, intimate, finely decorated and most of all very welcoming.

In Paris we will be lodging at the Hotel Edouard Manet in the 13th arrondissement near the Place d'Italie. The Manet is a charming and well maintained two star hotel where I've been bringing my groups for 10 years. What do I most value about the Manet? There has been ZERO turnover in the past 10 years - and that includes housekeeping staff as well! Besides that their breakfast choices are the best and their rooms are well maintained and recently renovated.
Hotel Sous les Figuiers
visit Valeri's site
A look at Provence

Due to the fluctuations in the Euro, we may need to re-price the trip costs if the exchange rate changes by more than 10 percent either way at the time the final payment is due.

No refunds will be made if a trip is canceled less then 90 days before the departure date. The only exception to this will be if another student can be found to replace you. Should you need to cancel 90 days or more before the trip takes place, the trip price will be refunded minus the administration fee of $500.00. The trip does not include airfare, lunches and dinners or personal expenses including gratuities for maids at hotel. Please check with Valeri before booking flights to Marseille via Paris.

Please Note: It is highly recommended that you purchase travel insurance for this trip. I recommend going to http://www.insuremytrip.com This is a site that will provide you with comparative quotes based on the information you give them. This will help you in the event of lost or delayed baggage and a host of other eventualities

Class is limited to 14 artist participants, so please enroll early! If you have any further questions about the trip please do not hesitate to call Valeri at (914) 636-7727 or Philip at 212-414-8875.

Payment schedule as follows:

A $500 deposit holds your space. Initial deposit is due by July 1, 2007. Please remember that there are limited single rooms available. If you want a single room please indicate that when you mail in your deposit. These will be given out on a first come, first served basis. If your request for a single room can't be honored because they have all been booked we will let you know and give you the option of sharing a room. If sharing a room and have someone you would prefer to room with, please let us know. Space is limited so please send in your deposit early to make sure you're able to join us on this exciting French painting/cultural experience.

$1500 due on October 15, 2007

$1500 Final payment due plus any single room supplements or double room upgrade on February 15, 2008

Costs include instruction, lodging in Paris and St. Remy, all ground transportation, all breakfasts, a welcome and a farewell dinner (with wine), entry to the remarkable Cathdedrale d'Images where a cavernous underground area has been transformed to show a variety of art related slides with haunting classical music as well as all other museum entry fees!

To pay securely by credit card please call me at 212-414-8875 and I will process it in real time with you!


Phil Levine Workshops, Inc.
69 Bank Street #102. NY, NY 10014
phone: 212-414-8875 fax: 866-501-6873
e-mail: philiplevine@earthlink.net