Creative retreats, painting vacations & art getaways
Melinda Cootsona
September 7 - 12, 2025
Inspiration Starts Here!
Medium: Oil or Acrylic
Level: Intermediate
Location: Studio
Status: Open for Enrollment
Rates & Enrollment
Deposit is $450, balance due 30 days before arrival
Day Student Tuition: $1144 + Materials fee
Inn-Stay Package*: $2,380 - $3,220 + Materials fee
*Your Inn-Stay Retreat Package includes:
Workshop Tuition, lodging, dinner 2 nights (welcome and farewell), breakfast and lunch each day, daily snack breaks, unlimited coffee, tea & seltzer.
For your independent dinners, there are many restaurants with a wide variety of cuisines and price points, within comfortable walking distance of the Inn, plus Whole Foods Market and Trader Joe’s.
Click here for Sample Daily Agenda.
You can choose a room to yourself (single occupancy) or double your fun, bring a friend and split a room (double occupancy).
To learn more about your options or to register, click the Register Now button.
About This Workshop
Do you struggle with finding subject matter or with staying inspired to paint? Have you thought about exploring different subject matter? Join Melinda in this fast paced workshop where we work with multiple subjects including landscape, still life, figure and abstract to re-ignite excitement in your own work. We will start each morning with “Spark it!” projects to get your creative juices flowing and continue with afternoon painting sessions where Melinda will focus on each individual student.
Projects will include:
Image to abstract - Using a photo to inspire loose abstracted paintings.
Flattening a Floral - Distorting perspective to create a unique still life.
Faces and Masks - Creating expressive and intuitive faces.
Abstract with Color - Focusing on color to create abstract compositions.
And more…
Students will leave with
Experience with landscape, still life and abstract painting
New ideas for creating a painting routine
Inspiration for new and different approaches to your own work
Renewed confidence
The fundamentals of composition and color
Exposure to contemporary and historic artists who will inspire your work
About Melinda Cootsona
Melinda Cootsona has been teaching painting internationally to students of all levels for more than 24 years. Her goal is to inspire students to find their own direction, and to build their confidence in the creative process. She is known for pulling out the strengths and individual voice of each student, whether in workshops or online. Melinda’s work has been included in exhibitions at the Bakersfield Museum of Art and the Triton Museum in California, The San Francisco Art Market, The Coos Bay Museum of Art in Oregon, and Art Basel Miami, as well as many group and solo shows throughout the U.S.
Sample Agenda
Will I receive a confirmation in the email?
You will receive an email confirmation and, as time gets closer, more email full of info and goodies.
Here is the payment schedule:
$450 deposit is due at the time of registration.
Remaining balance is due 30 days before your retreat start date
Pay in Full at time of registration and save $100 (does not apply to Day Student package)
Holiday Discount! Register by January 2nd and receive $100 off any Inn-Stay package (does not apply to Day Student package). Code HOLIDAY.
Please read our full cancellation policy HERE
2025 Workshops Now Open for Registration
Hey There!
Please send an email to Hello@CRVInn.com
or call us at 860-916-0514 if you have any questions.
We’ll get back to you ASAP!