Join internationally renowned quilt artist Carolina Oneto at Atelier Clos Mirabel for a 5-day modern quilting workshop in the French Pyrénées, South West France. Under Carolina’s expert instruction, you will master colour theory, contemporary quilt design, and improvisational stitching techniques.
About this course:
Great artists rarely say everything in a single piece. Josef Albers painted his squares for more than two decades, and Monet returned to the same haystacks again and again. In 1930, Georgia O’Keeffe painted the same flower, the jack-in-the-pulpit, six times: the first canvas is a realistic study, and with each new painting she moved closer, simplified the forms and intensified the colour, until the last one became an almost abstract image. Six paintings of one flower became one of the clearest lessons in how a series develops. Working in series is how an idea grows, how a personal voice appears, and how a group of quilts becomes a coherent body of work ready to be exhibited.
In this retreat with Carolina Oneto, participants will learn a clear method to take one idea and develop it through a sequence of 20” x 20” quilt tops, changing one variable at a time.
Every day combines a short talk or demonstration, studio time and a critique wall where we look at the work together.
This retreat is not about learning a new technique; it is about learning to think like an artist. Participants will leave with five 20” x 20” quilt tops, a notebook full of studies, a method they can apply to any idea, and a plan to continue their series at home. Level: confident piecers, comfortable sewing their own designs.
Quilting Workshop with Carolina Oneto:
Saturday
4.00 – Check-in time from 4pm onwardsGuests arrive, settle in and explore Atelier Clos Mirabel.
6.00 – Welcome drinks and dinner
Sunday
During day one, participants will work with their “seed”, a starting idea they bring from home, and define the rules of their series.
8.30 – 9.30 Buffet breakfast of local and regional produce
10.00 – 1.00 Morning workshop
1.00 – 2.30 Lunch at Clos Mirabel
2.30 – 4.30 Afternoon workshop
6.00 – Aperitifs before 4-course dinner in the Manor House or on the terrace
Monday
Day two is dedicated to colour
8.30 – 9.30 Buffet breakfast of local and regional produce
10.00 – 1.00 Morning workshop
1.00 – 2.30 Lunch at Clos Mirabel
2.30 – 4.30 Afternoon workshop
6.00 – Aperitifs before 4-course dinner in the Manor House or on the terrace
Tuesday
Day three is dedicated to composition: two ways of discovering how much a single idea can change while remaining itself.
8.30 – 9.30 Buffet breakfast of local and regional produce
10.00 – 1.00 Morning workshop
1.00 – 2.30 Lunch at Clos Mirabel
2.30 – 4.30 Afternoon workshop
6.00 – Aperitifs before 4-course dinner in the Manor House or on the terrace
Wednesday – Free Day
8.30 – 9.30 Buffet breakfast of local and regional produce
We suggest wine tasting in a local vineyard, exploring Pau or beyond.
6.00 – Aperitifs before 4-course dinner in the Manor House or on the terrace
Thursday
Day four is the day of risk, when participants push their series beyond the comfortable, with individual reviews to see where each series wants to go.
8.30 – 9.30 Buffet breakfast of local and regional produce
10.00 – 1.00 Morning workshop
1.00 – 2.30 Lunch at Clos Mirabel
2.30 – 4.30 Afternoon workshop
6.00 – Aperitifs before 4-course dinner in the Manor House or on the terrace
Friday
On day five, we will edit, sequence and name each series, and close the retreat with a group show.
8.30 – 9.30 Buffet breakfast of local and regional produce
10.00 – 1.00 Morning workshop
1.00 – 2.30 Lunch at Clos Mirabel
2.30 – 4.30 Afternoon workshop
6.00 – Evening exhibition in the art studio with aperitifs
7.00 – 4 course dinner in the Manor House or on the terrace
Saturday
8.30 – 9.30 Buffet Breakfast and departure (Check-out 11am)
The Art Studio, offers a spacious open plan layout of 75 m2. It is available at all times during your stay. Click here for more information.
Non-participating guests: we are more than happy to welcome non-workshop guests, accompanying partners, family or friends. There are plenty of activities to experience around Clos Mirabel, that will make your holiday unforgettable Click here for more information.
