Cultural immersion is about being placed in a unique setting and being invited to feel the influences of the history, people, and their land. Orkney,Scotland is a collection of varied islands that hosts the widest of skies and the broadest of fields. By numerous intimate encounters with people and the land, you will be able to uncover the artist within. Any level of art experience will flourish as you learn a very unique printmaking process, watercolor white-line woodprint. This technique began as "The Provincetown Print." We will dance, paint and stand at the large stone circles, The Ring Of Brodgar and The Stones Of Stenness, and creep along the entrance to MaesHowe. All of these sites are UNESCO World Heritage sites. Sometimes, one needs to leave the familiar in order to discover what is within you all along.

Jeanne Bouza Rose has been involved in art throughout her life in many varied ways. She has worked with the following outstanding artists over the years: Richard Vaux, Francis Avery, Hans Jennerjohn, Staats Fasoldt, and Pia Oste-Alexander. Her work has explored all different mediums from oil, silver, beaded jewelry, glass, clay, steel, stone, and now watercolor white-line woodblock.

Currently the Waterfront Gallery in Stromness, Orkney, Scotland, Soothe the Soul in Sedona Arizona, Anan Caram Gallery in Binghamton, New York, and Amari Gallery in Hudson, New York display her work. She has shown at the RavenHeart, Sedona, Arizona, Woodstock Artist Association, The Woodstock School of Art, Woodstock Byrdcliffe Guild’s Kleinert/James Gallery, Adelphi University, The Wheatley School, the Art League of Long Island, the Smithtown Arts Council, Footprints Gallery in Huntington, and Woodwick House in Orkney. Her work is in numerous North American and European private collections.

As a teacher for the past 30 years in public education, she has learned to address and meet the needs of diverse learners. Jeanne adheres to the premise that to be an effective teacher, one must continually seek to be learner so she takes as many classes as she teaches. She has been the recipient of numerous teaching awards.

She continues to work on transferring her fascination of the standing stones of Orkney to a large welded steel sculpture under the direction of sculptor, David Haussler. Her visits to Orkney have also inspired her to create a new version of printmaking, the Orkney Print.

Her fascination with the landscape of Orkney was featured in a major article in THE ARTIST’S SKETCHBOOK magazine, in February 2006. The Orkney Art Adventure was highlighted in the travel section of AMERICAN STYLE magazine, October 2005, SCOTTISH LIFE magazine in Spring 2006 and ISLANDS Spring 2007.

This year her watercolors will be the first watercolors shown at the outstanding Brunelli Gallery in Binghamton, New York. Her paintings of Orkney are also scheduled for a showing at the Anan Caram gallery, also in Binghamton.

I am not alone. Others before me have been far more engrossed in the sun, moon and the stars and their shadows upon the land. But it is a discovery to find that the drawings of youth were really the sketches of the future where experience and knowledge would fill in the colors. And it is a discovery to find that others can respond to these images that have followed me from youth to adult. I first visited Orkney in 1983 and by coincidence and choice I found I had returned every 10 years until 2004 when I recognized the influence Orkney had had on me.

I passionately believe that to be inspired, one needs to find not only the beauty inherent in the land and sky, but to also learn about the history of the place and the people who have been nurtured by it and its soil. Art has been a constant thread in my life, but it is recently, that I have taken my art off my walls and shown it to the public. I can only hope that the centering I have discovered in the creation of these works is transferable to you. Through this, connections will be forged to others linking us all together with ties to our ancient roots of the earth.

I invite you to experience that which has brought me great joy. It is a gallery of color, light, land, the earth, and the stones that punctuate through time and history. I honor the earth for sharing its beauty and for holding us all together.

I thank you for taking the time to wander and for wondering if this is the year you will travel to Orkney and we will meet.

Once you get to Orkney there is an all inclusive package. The fee of $2000-$2300 takes care of your gourmet meals and charming lodging at the serene Woodwick House as well as all art supplies, instruction, travel and tours around the island. There are also numerous encounters with island experts. All of this is included.

You must arrange your own airfare. Overseas flights will connect to Kirkwall in Orkney or buses and trains are available from all major British cities.

We travel and tour and do our art on a daily basis, settling back at Woodwick House for our evening meal. Sometimes we will leave in the long evening for traditional dancing, to visit a stone cottage, or to walk the stone circles in the moonlight. The grounds of Woodwick House are special enough to enjoy in the evening. You can easily walk down to the edge of the sea, the North Sea where it is calm and seals often bask. During July and August the nights are long and the heat of the North America is far away.

" Orkney's light and sky are striking; the ancient roots profound. Here, Jeanne--so linked to the island and at ease with teaching--sparked my own multifaceted 'adventure," while Woodwick House charmed in every way. Learning the white-line technique and visiting artists' studios expanded my sense of design and color which has improved my drawing tremendously." – Louise

"We were very emotionally moved by our trip to Orkney. The experience of creating art on an island with so much ancient history is a privilege and an obvious inspiration. The accommodations, food and staff at the Woodwick House were an important part of the experience - it was well kept, food was excellent and the staff attentive to your needs and very endearing. The art studio was great - wonderful view, well lit and spacious and private. You, Jeanne, were the consummate professional arranging our introduction to Orkney. You were such great company!! You brought the island alive. We felt that in one week we had gotten a great overview of the island from the historical point of view, an introduction to the local people of Orkney, the artists, and craftspeople of the island and we also had some time to relax and simply enjoy and experience the landscape. We felt very sad leaving and look forward to returning." - Sandra

“It was sooooo great. We owe big time. I will not fill the pages with what fun it was, but also what great people you introduced us to. You and the Orcadians you arranged for us to meet are very special people. This was by far one of the most significant vacations we have ever taken. We loved Orkney, all the wonderful people we met and the interesting sites we saw." - Marty

“The provocative shadows around Woodwick House and its grounds were so artistic! I felt immersed!” - Flora

For me wasn't only seeing the sites ...they felt even more eloquent in their silences...it was seeing them against the backdrop of such an incredibly beautiful and varied space. It's the kind of place where you don't need any other activity other than watching the play of nature...It's the every-changing colors of the sky reflected in the sea. It's the way the light changes every second and you can actually see the sun's rays against the clouds. It's the cattle grazing, the birds singing, the clean, misty air...and all of this creating such a feeling of peace and harmony which is so tranquilizing.

...and by the way...even though the art workshops were not the focus of my visit, I want you to know that I thoroughly enjoyed participating in them with you. You should feel proud that your educator's tenacity seems to have uncovered a latent artistic talent." - Inga

Well, please consider joining me on Orkney this year or next. My website has lots more information.

RoseCrossing.com or call 1.516.978.2260