OCTOBER 2-4 2026
October 2-4, 2026, at
Haliburton Forest and Wildlife Reserve Ltd. 1095 Redkenn Road, Haliburton, On K0M 1S0
1 800 631 2198 https://www.haliburtonforest.com/about-us/
Haliburton Forest and Wildlife Reserve Ltd. 1095 Redkenn Road, Haliburton, On K0M 1S0
1 800 631 2198 https://www.haliburtonforest.com/about-us/
Plein Air with Denise Antaya: The outside world and how it’s brought to life on canvas.
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The everyday themes in Denise Antaya’s oil paintings combine her love of nature and her fascination with light and how it transforms an often-overlooked scene. Her subjects range from season to season but almost always represent the natural environment untouched by man. She has the ability to capture a moment and even transport one back to a quieter, simpler time. Her process starts with an underpainting, called a brunaille. It’s meticulously rendered, as the most important part of the process. Here the composition, value structure and drawing is sorted out, before the complication of colour is added. It’s a lot easier to change it at this stage in the process. No amount of paint can correct a bad drawing or poor composition. It’s the foundation needed to create a successful painting. Once she determines that everything is where it needs to be, she adds colour. Her plein air paintings work hand in hand with her studio work. Being out in nature where you see the nuances of colour help compensate for the drawbacks of photography when used. To Antaya, painting the landscape is relevant. Everyone can appreciate nature, but it’s not the only reason she does this. It’s a way to document “how it was”. She loves the beauty of nature, unchanged by man, but the environment is being forever changed. Farms are being bought for development, old barns torn down, hundred-year-old trees disappearing. It’s a way to remember, often brings back simpler times when the world was not so fast paced. It’s a visual reminder of where we were, and sometimes of where we are heading. The landscape is a never-ending source of inspiration, one that will never end with its ever-changing moods and complications. It’s a lifetime endeavour she hopes to never master!
Accommodation is shared in 2- and 3-bedroom cottages, with kitchenettes, dining area, propane stoves and fireplaces, and a bathroom. Many of the bedrooms have twin beds so numbers can increase. Some cottages are connected by a hallway. The Haliburton Forest is about 3 hours from Mississauga, and Ottawa and 2.5 from Toronto. There are trails for hiking, lakes to swim and as well a tour of the wolf centre can be arranged. The seminar building is a large building with many windows down two sides. There is room for standing easels and tabletop easels. Lighting is bright except for the very centre of the room.
Cost: 2 nights’ accommodation, lunch and dinners included (starting with dinner Friday to Lunch on Sunday), evening snacks, welcoming wine/beer and cheese, instructor. Bring your own breakfast.
Single Room $485 /person Double (2 in room) $440 each
To accommodate 30 artists we need some willing to share rooms.
Add an additional night by reserving with the Haliburton Forest. Contact: Angie Grant.
Cost: 2 nights’ accommodation, lunch and dinners included (starting with dinner Friday to Lunch on Sunday), evening snacks, welcoming wine/beer and cheese, instructor. Bring your own breakfast.
Single Room $485 /person Double (2 in room) $440 each
To accommodate 30 artists we need some willing to share rooms.
Add an additional night by reserving with the Haliburton Forest. Contact: Angie Grant.
SCHEDULE FOR THE RETREAT:
FRIDAY
You may arrive earlier to meet friends and/or go painting Register at the Office, check into Room when available
Arrive after 10 am; set up painting stations in Seminar building or opportunity to paint outside (weather permitting). May purchase lunch at Smokehouse.
2:00 PM – Welcome Wine/beer and cheese at the Boiler Room
3:30- 5:00 PM – Painting Demo by Denise
5:30-6:30 PM – Dinner in the Smokehouse Restaurant
7:00 PM – seminar building for discussion with Denise
8:15 PM –Mix & Mingle Wine/Beer & Cheese at the Boiler Room
SATURDAY
9:30 Workshop Plein Air or Paint on Your Own in the Seminar Building
12:30 PM –Lunch in the Smokehouse Restaurant
2 - 4:30 Workshop Plein Air or Paint on Your Own in the Seminar Building
5:30-6:30 PM –Dinner
7:00 PM Show’n Tell in the Seminar Room
8:15 PM Mix & Mingle in the Boiler Room BYOB
SUNDAY
9:15 AM – Group Photo – Meet Seminar Building
9:30 AM Plein Air painting or seminar Building
11:00 AM – Check-out of rooms
12:00 PM – Lunch in the Smokehouse Restaurant
4:00 PM – Check-out of Seminar Building
FRIDAY
You may arrive earlier to meet friends and/or go painting Register at the Office, check into Room when available
Arrive after 10 am; set up painting stations in Seminar building or opportunity to paint outside (weather permitting). May purchase lunch at Smokehouse.
2:00 PM – Welcome Wine/beer and cheese at the Boiler Room
3:30- 5:00 PM – Painting Demo by Denise
5:30-6:30 PM – Dinner in the Smokehouse Restaurant
7:00 PM – seminar building for discussion with Denise
8:15 PM –Mix & Mingle Wine/Beer & Cheese at the Boiler Room
SATURDAY
9:30 Workshop Plein Air or Paint on Your Own in the Seminar Building
12:30 PM –Lunch in the Smokehouse Restaurant
2 - 4:30 Workshop Plein Air or Paint on Your Own in the Seminar Building
5:30-6:30 PM –Dinner
7:00 PM Show’n Tell in the Seminar Room
8:15 PM Mix & Mingle in the Boiler Room BYOB
SUNDAY
9:15 AM – Group Photo – Meet Seminar Building
9:30 AM Plein Air painting or seminar Building
11:00 AM – Check-out of rooms
12:00 PM – Lunch in the Smokehouse Restaurant
4:00 PM – Check-out of Seminar Building
Cancellation Policy for ECOAA Members – You must cancel with ECOAA:
Accessibility: there are 3-5 steps into each cottage and into the restaurant. The Seminar Building is at ground level
Provided: bedding, sheets, towels, blankets, pillows.
What to Bring: Unscented toiletries, shampoo, medicines, indoor shoes or slippers, hair blower if needed.
Plastic drop cloths for a table and floor if painting inside.
Headset if you want to listen to music when painting.
Your painting gear, easel, supplies, sunscreen, bug repellent if plein air. Odorless mineral spirits if painting in oil (no turpentine). Garbage bags for your own garbage. Please dispose of wastes in a responsible manner.
Questions: Contact Louise Scott-Bushell at [email protected] 416 997 0345
REGISTRATION – Brush It Up, Haliburton Forest, Oct. 2-4, 2026
DEADLINE to register August 1, 2026 (100% refund -$50 if cancelled by Aug.1, 2026)
Register early – don’t be disappointed. Space is limited (30 with shared rooms); registration may close earlier if numbers have been reached. You must be a current* paid up ECOAA member to attend.
- Written notice of cancellation by email to [email protected]
- Cancel before – August 1, 2026 – 100% Refund less $50 Admin Fee
- Cancel after August 1,2026 no refund unless we have someone register to take your spot.
Accessibility: there are 3-5 steps into each cottage and into the restaurant. The Seminar Building is at ground level
Provided: bedding, sheets, towels, blankets, pillows.
What to Bring: Unscented toiletries, shampoo, medicines, indoor shoes or slippers, hair blower if needed.
Plastic drop cloths for a table and floor if painting inside.
Headset if you want to listen to music when painting.
Your painting gear, easel, supplies, sunscreen, bug repellent if plein air. Odorless mineral spirits if painting in oil (no turpentine). Garbage bags for your own garbage. Please dispose of wastes in a responsible manner.
Questions: Contact Louise Scott-Bushell at [email protected] 416 997 0345
REGISTRATION – Brush It Up, Haliburton Forest, Oct. 2-4, 2026
DEADLINE to register August 1, 2026 (100% refund -$50 if cancelled by Aug.1, 2026)
Register early – don’t be disappointed. Space is limited (30 with shared rooms); registration may close earlier if numbers have been reached. You must be a current* paid up ECOAA member to attend.
ALL PARTICIPANTS MUST BE CURRENT MEMBERS OF ECOAA
JOIN US NOW!
JOIN US NOW!
Registration opens May 1
DOWNLOAD THE COLOUR BROCHURE
with mail in registration form
*Please use the online registration and email [email protected]*
with mail in registration form
*Please use the online registration and email [email protected]*
