Les Escaliers | Argenton-Chateau 79150
Studio Escalier | Paris 75018
Lecture in the Paris Program Studio | December 2011
Gericault Atelier - Paris Programs 2007-2009 | Paris 75009
ABOUT | FACILITIES – Studios and Historic Buildings

“There is no correct or incorrect drawing, said Ingres. There is beautiful drawing or ugly, that is all.”

“Il n’y a pas de dessin correct ou incorrect, déclare Ingres; il y a un dessin beau ou laid, voilà tout.”

– Edgar Degas, Degas (1918)

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The Paris Program StudioStudio Escalier, Montmartre

Located on a tiny street in Montmartre (18ème arrondissement), our Paris Program Studio sits in a quiet residential section of a quartier world-renowned for its artistic heritage. [Metro: Abbesses – M12].

The studio is available to students during school hours only, Monday – Friday.
(For exact daily schedules, see individual Paris program course descriptions).

It offers approximately 450 sq ft (42m2) of active studio space, with a 14-foot ceiling (4.25 meters), and one entire wall of north light. There is ample space for up to 10 students to work, plus the instructors.

The studio is well-heated and insulated. High-quality easels, chairs, tall stools, drawing boards and folding stools are provided for classroom use.

The Paris Program Studio is currently available for drawing instruction only. No cameras, mirrors, devices, electronics, audio or video recorders of any kind are allowed in the studio at any time.

The Paris Program Studio is a private and historic faculty residence, and is not open to the general public.

Our Paris address was the first Montmartre atelier of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec where he first met Suzanne Valadon.

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The Intensive Course StudioLes Escaliers, Argenton-Chateau

Our Summer and Autumn Intensive Courses are held at Les Escaliers, the studio-residence of Timothy Stotz and Nicole Michelle Tully, in Argenton-Chateau, France (Poitou-Charentes – 79).

The Intensive Course Studio is available to students Sunday to Thursday, during school hours only (Su – Th, 9am – 6pm). The Intensive Course curriculum takes Fridays and Saturdays as its weekend.

The course studio in Argenton-Chateau offers an approximately 900 sq ft (85m2) northlight studio on the third floor (40 steps to walk up). There is ample room for twelve students to work, plus the instructors.

The Intensive Course studio offers hot-water brush sinks, a small study lounge and reading room, a coffee break area, racks and shelves for individual supply storage, and a full bathroom. The studio is well-ventilated, heated and insulated, and its ceiling peaks at 19 feet (6 metres).

High-quality easels, chairs, tall stools, drawing boards and tabourets will be provided for drawing and painting in the classroom only, and a small studio fee will cover the cost of providing non-toxic solvents and medium.

No cameras, mirrors, devices, electronics, audio or video recorders of any kind are allowed in the studio at any time.

Les Escaliers is a private and historic faculty residence, and is not open to the general public.

The property was the childhood home and residence of 19th c. sénateur Camille Jouffrault and his son député de Deux-Sêvres André Jouffrault.

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Other Facilities in Argenton-Chateau

Several past Special Programs met in parallel to the Summer Intensive, and held their daily work-sessions at the municipal Salle des Fetes in Argenton Chateau, or at the historic 19th c property called Les Sylvains. ( By contrast, all current Special Programs are held in April and May, and now meet in the Intensive Course Studio.)

Built in 1900, the municipal Salle des Fetes in Argenton-Chateau is a 4500 sq ft (420 m2) facility, featuring a 1500 sq ft northlight painting studio, its own kitchen, bathrooms and sinks. It has been used as both an instructional space and a public exhibition space for student and faculty works.

Built in 1861 as an hotel particulier for the local notaireLes Sylvains (“The Fauns”) is an 8000 sq ft (750 m2) building in the center of Argenton-Chateau. It offers multiple furnished 2BR apartments for student housing, a 600 sq. ft north-light art studio, a wireless DSL network (for student use only), and laundry facilities. It offers a private, quarter-acre formal garden for official functions, unofficial student gatherings, and plein-air performances.

Les Sylvains is wholly owned and operated by Studio Escalier, and is not open to the general public.