Italy!

 I'm back! My trip to Italy was fast paced and exciting. I took my artists to Fabriano to make their own paper, to Assisi to make their own watercolor paint with Alina Gallo, to San Marino to see the specatular views, to Rimini to see the Adriatic sea, and many other beautiful locations throughout Italy. We ate, we drank, we painted, and then we ate and drank some more. Our tour guide for this trip was Piero of Italiana Tours, and we stayed in a beautifully restored medieval farmhouse at the lavish Parco Ducal in Urbania. Here's a few photos from the trip...

our farmhouse b&b in Urbania, with the ducal palace in the background

the local police in the republic of San Marino.

at the paper making workshop in Fabriano with Anna Massimina and Sandro Tigliano

Urbania, Italy

an antipasta course of meats and cheeses

making paper in Fabriano, Italy

wonderful views of the mountains from our B&B farmhouse

fabulous views from atop the mountain at San Marino

the beautiful colors of Urbania at night

cobblestone alleyways lead to more adventures

charming letter box on the side of ancient building

I'll be posting more photos next week, so stay tuned! In other news, I'm totally thrilled to report that my painting Serious Side Eye is juried into the the Montana Watercolor Society 40th National Exhibit. This is my 3rd acceptance, earning my Signature Status with MTWS, which is now the 26th Signature that I've earned. 

Serious Side Eye, 12x16 Watercolor by Annie Strack

and I also just found out that I won The Art of Watercolour magazine's competition, resulting in a feature interview that will be published in the 51st edition coming out in September. 

new paintings and events

 I painted en plein air during the Bourbon and Bluegrass event at Winterthur, Delaware. It was a lovely day and a great event next to Clenny Run creek, with fabulous music and perfect weather. 

Clenny Run, 9x12 watercolor on panel, in progress

Clenny Run, 9x12 watercolor (sold)

Yesterday I painted in the plein air competition at the Old Stone House park in New Jersey. We are having wonderful weather this Spring and the location was fun to paint. 

Old Stone House, 8x10 oil in progress

Old Stone House, 8x10 oil on panel

We had a great turnout for the Open Studio Tour in May. Paintings were flying off the walls!

assortment of plein air paintings by Annie Strack

view of my studio

more studio

Mosiac art by Carol Apicella

Karen Fratalli and her paintings

Art Glass by Patsy Keller, Sunroom Studios

Paintings by Nicki Wandersee and Barbara Tlush in booths

Next week I'm traveling to Italy! I'm taking a group of artists to paint, eat, drink, and shop. I have a lot of great activities planned for this trip, including making our own paper in Fabriano, making our own watercolor paint at the A. Gallo paint factory in Assisi, visiting the birthplace of Raphael in Urbino, and visiting the tiny mountaintop country of San Marino. 

Each artist received a block of Hahnemuhle paper and dozens of Dynasty Brushes!

As a Brand Ambassador for Hahnemuhle paper and Dynasty Brush, I'm thrilled to be able to pass along some of these fabulous products to the artists accompanying me on this trip. Each artist received a block of the Hahnemuhle Collection watercolor paper, and a HUGE assortment of brushes from Dynasty Brush! I'll be posting photos from Italy soon, so stay tuned!