Cape Cod, Mass

As told by Instructor Anne Tochka:

This past summer, Blue Hippo Artists hosted a residency on Cape Cod that caused passing

tourists to exclaim “What are you doing??!” But onlookers weren’t the only ones disturbed by

our unconventional methods. The artists attending the residency faced grueling tests of will on

some of the longest, hottest days of the summer. To challenge their stamina and strengthen

their resolve, we kept then on a strict diet of candied bread from the local boulangerie and

allowed them to quench their thirst only with High Noon seltzers. Often, the students were

awoken before dawn and forced to stand in line at the bakery to secure first pick of the

croissants and sourdoughs to appease their instructors’ insatiable appetite for fresh bread. We

stayed in a historic, haunted boarding house with no AC which was overrun by raccoons. Here,

the house marm was accompanied by a mischievous fae child, who was rumored to be the true

power behind Blue Hippo Artists.

When the students were finally allowed to paint, they were only allowed to paint lighthouses.

However, when we permitted them to paint a windmill, even the most mild mannered among

them finally broke, snapping “I hate windmills.” While we mostly had them standing in the baking

hot sun to paint, we lucked out towards the end of the residency with a couple of miserably rainy

days. On one such day, as the artists began painting their lighthouses, they watched helplessly

as the fog rolled in and the rain washed away all their efforts. In between bites of croissant, the

instructors praised the students for their strength of character.

The residency on Cape Cod was a resounding success in every measurable way, and we’re

proud to report a 50% retention rate* by the final day.

*this figure includes the student that depended on a ride from one of the instructors