From Concept to Confidence to Personal Style
with Leoni Duff
7–11 July 2027
3 days tuition | Pastel, Oils, Charcoal & Mixed Media | All Levels
A three-day immersive creative retreat designed to help you move from inspiration and ideas through to stronger artistic decisions, greater confidence and a more personal way of working.
Residential retreat at Greenhills Art Centre, Western Australian Wheatbelt
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3 Days Tuition
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Pastel, Oils, Charcoal & Mixed Media
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All Levels Welcome
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6–12 Participants
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Residential Retreat
From Concept to Confidence to Personal Style
This retreat is designed as a creative journey — from discovering what inspires you, to developing ideas, making confident artistic decisions and creating a body of work that begins to reflect your own personal style.
Through guided exercises, demonstrations, experimentation, discussion and dedicated studio time, Leoni will help you explore the creative process from concept through to completion.
Rather than teaching everyone to paint in the same way, the retreat encourages you to understand your own artistic interests, instincts and visual language, while building the confidence to make stronger and more deliberate choices.
During the Retreat You'll Explore
1. Discovering Your Creative Voice
Understanding creativity and knowing yourself as an artist
We begin by exploring the nature of creativity and what it means to develop an authentic artistic practice.
Through discussion and mind-mapping exercises, we will identify your individual interests, influences, experiences, subjects and ideas. This process helps uncover the themes and qualities that naturally draw you in and can become the foundation of your personal artistic voice.
2. Developing the Idea
From inspiration to concept
Once we have identified what interests and inspires us, we will explore how an initial idea can be developed into a strong visual concept.
We will look at how to gather and select source material, generate possibilities and develop preliminary studies, while allowing room for intuition, curiosity and experimentation.
3. Designing the Artwork
Balancing form and content
A compelling artwork is about more than the subject itself.
We will explore the relationship between form and content, considering how composition, shape, colour, tone, mark-making and technique can support the underlying idea or feeling within a work.
You will learn to make more deliberate design decisions while developing your own visual language.
4. Exploring Possibilities
Experimentation and creative risk-taking
We will explore the different stages of the design process and discover ways to move beyond the first obvious solution.
Through creative exercises, experimentation and working studies, you will be encouraged to try different approaches, embrace unexpected results and develop greater confidence in your decision-making.
5. Finding Your Medium & Approach
Choosing the right vehicle for your idea
Should your idea be expressed through landscape, figurative work or still life?
Would it be best suited to soft pastel, oils, charcoal or mixed media?
We will consider how subject, medium, technique and artistic approach work together. You will explore which combination best supports your individual ideas and allows your work to develop with greater authenticity.
6. From Concept to Completion
Creating a body of work
Now the ideas come together.
Working from a curated selection of resources or your own references, you will develop a group of paintings from initial concept through to completion.
With demonstrations, individual guidance and dedicated studio time, you will be encouraged to experiment, refine your ideas and make confident creative decisions throughout the process.
The emphasis is on developing a body of work rather than simply completing individual paintings—allowing connections, themes and personal qualities to emerge naturally.
7. Review, Reflect & Progress
Recognising where your work can go next
We conclude by reviewing the work created during the retreat and reflecting on the discoveries made along the way.
Through individual feedback and group discussion, we will consider what has emerged in your work, what feels authentic, what has changed and what possibilities lie ahead.
The aim is to leave with more than finished paintings. You will have greater confidence in your creative process, a clearer understanding of your artistic voice and a stronger sense of direction for your ongoing practice.
The Journey
Discover → Develop → Design → Experiment → Create → Reflect → Progress
From concept to confidence to personal style.
Your Retreat Schedule
Wednesday 7 July
Arrive at Greenhills from 4pm, settle into your room and meet Leoni and your fellow participants before dinner.
Thursday 8 July
Workshop Day One
Friday 9 July
Workshop Day Two
On Friday evening, we'll head to nearby Lake Kimberley Bar & Grill at Whitegum Farm for a relaxed dinner together.
Friday dinner and drinks are not included in the retreat price and are paid directly by guests at the restaurant
Saturday 10 July
Workshop Day Three
Sunday 11 July
Breakfast followed by departure.
About Leoni Duff
Based in the historic Tasmanian city of Launceston, Leoni Duff is an accomplished artist and highly regarded art educator whose career has evolved through a lifelong dedication to creativity, learning and the sharing of knowledge.
An accomplished musician in her early years, Leoni turned her focus seriously to painting during the 1980s. Her artistic career developed rapidly, leading to invitations to exhibit and teach throughout Australia and internationally. Although largely self-taught, Leoni has continually sought opportunities to learn from and work alongside some of the world’s most respected artists and tutors, many of whom have taught in her own studio.
Her passion for artistic exploration has also taken her extensively throughout Europe, where she has conducted study tours for her students, visiting the great art collections and drawing inspiration from the masters.
Today, Leoni is the founder and operator of the Brisbane Street Art School in Launceston, where she teaches, conducts workshops and creates her own work within a beautiful and inspiring studio environment. Working primarily in pastel, oils and charcoal, she has received recognition through numerous major art awards, both as a winner and finalist.
For Leoni, teaching is an integral part of her artistic practice. She has a genuine gift for connecting with artists at every stage of their journey, generously sharing her knowledge, experience and technical expertise. Her enthusiasm, warmth and ability to inspire have earned her a reputation as an engaging, accomplished and encouraging teacher.
Her workshops offer far more than technical instruction—they are an opportunity to immerse oneself in the creative process, to explore new possibilities and to experience the joy of painting in the company of fellow artists. Leoni’s depth of experience, generous spirit and lifelong commitment to learning make her an exceptional mentor for an intimate and inspiring artistic retreat
Follow Leoni
Keep up with Leoni's work, workshops and painting practice:
Website | Instagram | Facebook
Meet Leoni
Watch Leoni painting in pastel
The Greenhills Experience — More than a Workshop
A Greenhills retreat gives you the rare opportunity to step away from everyday life and spend several uninterrupted days immersed in painting.
Your Retreat Includes:
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four nights private accommodation at Greenhills
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three full days tuition with Leoni
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all meals and refreshments at Greenhills, except Friday dinner
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morning and afternoon tea
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generous access to the studio
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evening conversations and time with fellow artists
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airport transfers where applicable
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a small residential group.
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On Friday evening, the group will dine at Lake Kimberley Bar & Grill at Whitegum Farm. Friday dinner and drinks are at guests' own expense.
Who Should Attend?
This retreat is for artists who would like to move beyond simply learning another technique and spend time thinking more deeply about their own creative direction.
It would suit artists who:
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want to develop greater confidence in their artistic decisions
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have ideas but aren't always sure how to develop them
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would like to explore different subjects, mediums or approaches
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want to move towards a more personal style
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feel creatively stuck or unsure what direction to take next
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simply want several uninterrupted days to focus seriously on their art
Participants may work in pastel, oils, charcoal or mixed media, depending on the direction of their individual work.
The retreat is intentionally limited to 6–12 participants, allowing Leoni to provide substantial individual guidance.
Materials
A complete materials list will be provided to participants after booking.
Because this retreat allows for individual approaches, Leoni will provide guidance on suitable materials and mediums.
Your Retreat
$1,980 per person — private room
Price includes GST
Your retreat includes three full days tuition with Leoni, four nights private accommodation at Greenhills, all meals and refreshments at Greenhills except Friday dinner, and generous studio access throughout your stay.
A 20% deposit secures your place. The full balance is due eight weeks before the retreat. Monthly payment plans are available by prior arrangement.
Coming with a friend?
Save 10% each when sharing one of our limited twin rooms, subject to availability.
Twin Share — $1,782 per person
Independent Stay option
For participants who live locally or prefer to arrange their own nearby accommodation, a limited number of Independent Stay places are available, subject to availability.
You'll still join us for tuition, meals and refreshments at Greenhills, studio access and the social side of the retreat — you simply arrange your own accommodation or bring an approved self-contained caravan or motorhome.
Independent Stay — $1,500 per person
Price includes GST.
Friday dinner and drinks at Lake Kimberley Bar & Grill at Whitegum Farm are at guests' own expense for all accommodation options.
Find Greater Confidence in Your Own Creative Direction
Three days devoted to your art.
Time to experiment, question, explore and make work without the distractions of everyday life — supported by Leoni's decades of artistic and teaching experience.
Leave Greenhills with more than finished paintings: a clearer understanding of your creative voice, greater confidence in your decisions and new direction for the work that comes next.
7–11 July 2027
Limited to 12 participants.
Book Your Greenhills Retreat
Complete the form below and we'll send your deposit invoice to secure your place.