Some of you may have seen or read about my Casa Regis artist retreat from Fall 2019. This exposé is part 2 of my excursion, I also spent time at Villa Emma, I was so enamored by the beauty of this property I felt a need to share it. Here I introduce the villa and what it has to offer as an artist stay, for a retreat, a residency, or just a place to escape for creative types.

The villa is designed to assist in lodging for artists engaged at Casa Regis: Center for Culture and Contemporary Art, however, Villa Emma. is a treasure unto itself and has received just as much attention as an extraordinary property. It is a combination of beauty, striking architecture, and design from the pre-art nouveau era. The drive leading to the manor house is equally exciting, up winding roads passing charming villages, leading through the valley of ‘Valle Cervo’ which translates to Deer Valley in English. The moment I set foot on the grounds I knew I was in for a special treat. I felt the energy of the building, a remarkable place that had so much to share with me, and I for it, to create new memories for my creative practices.

First and foremost, Villa Emma is available for art lovers, creatives, and Italophiles, hosting between 8-10 people. Built-in 1894, with an architectural mix of Gothic and Neo-Classic on the outside and Romantic and Art Nouveau on the inside, this villa offers an experience of a by-gone era. The villa is perched on a hillside, situated in a historic mountain village in the Piedmont lower-Alps of North-West Italy, where herders, chestnut harvesters, and hemp dryers started their activities 1,000 years ago.

The entry and looking out onto the long driveway

A closer look at the Madonna and Child on the front of the villa

There are so many reasons why I feel enchanted by staying here.
The villa has a spectacular view and an over-grown, multi-layered garden, thick with cedar trees, rhododendron, azalea, roses, and wisteria. One can enjoy the gentle sound of the church bells and the stream running through the valley or meander through the tiny village (with all-of its 68 inhabitants), following irregular cobblestone paths to the water fountains. Or, hikers can continue outside the village through the wooded trails for hours, even reaching other small hamlets. There are Pilgrimage trails that lead to the Sanctuary of Oropa.

Another reason why the villa is so special is its location, as it is perfect for an artist's retreat, offering the un-plugged, quiet, slowed down life where a creative person can regenerate. A second plus about Villa Emma is it is an inspiration for artists, with its frescoed ceilings, 19th C. tile, unaltered décor, and vistas from the window. The third plus about this retreat location is that while surrounded by alpine beauty, you are only a short drive away from important artistic hubs if you want some of that classic beauty Italy is known for like Renaissance dome painted church ceilings.

The contemporary art scene connected to this region is the internationally influential Arte Povera movement that has left its enormous influence on contemporary art installations. Michelangelo Pistoletto’s utopian center, Citta dell’Arte, attracts international attention year-round. Castles from the Savoi dynasty and repurposed wool factories also have excellent art collections.

The city of Biella, which was just awarded UNESCO’s title of “Creative City” is a 20-minute drive and offers an ample choice of restaurants, churches, chocolate specialties, cured meats, cafes, bookstores, and shopping. For those who like to stay close to home, “Mazzucchetti’s” homemade pasta dishes and raw cheese are just 10 minutes away.

The villa houses a variety of design styles

Original furniture houses one of the hallways

The staircase leading to the second floor

At the top of the stairs is a beautiful ceiling fresco

Stain-glass windows and original wood detail

What the facility has to offer:
A full kitchen; a small study; a reading room; a living room; and a dining room (seating 8). There is space to eat outside in the garden too.

The villa is designed to host 8 “guests” plus 2 facilitators.
There are 4 “guest” bedrooms: Bedroom #1 has two single beds; bedroom #2, has two single beds; bedroom #3, has three single beds; bedroom #4, has one single.

In addition, 2 facilitators may sleep in the attic space, which is comfortable and simple but not furnished in the same historic style.

There are 3 bathrooms and 2 half baths.

There is a workspace (for painters) under the house with windows.

Pricing – the cost is € 1.000 per week plus a 50€ cleaning fee.

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One of four bedrooms, each of varying size

Fresh air and dreamy views in one the bedrooms

The season to come is June through September. At the foot of the Alps, not far from the Swiss border (elev. 780 meters), the area is best reserved for people with very flexible weather preferences as the weather can be variable. The owners of the Villa Emma. say they love it “when it gets Sahara hot and then the craziest lightening-thunder storm totally changes the temperature, filling the valley with fog, and you end up pulling out that wool sweater for a hot-chocolate kind of evening.”

How to get there. Due to being tucked away in the mountains, you may prefer to rent a car to fully explore the area. Villa Emma is a 20-minute drive from Biella or 1.5 hrs from the Milano Malpensa airport.

Door-to-door van rental services exist for reasonable prices as well as guided tourist tours in English or French. For the independent, patient, and adventuresome types, public transportation will get you everywhere, and there is a 15-minute walk through a wooded trail that gets you from the bus stop to the villa.

You may go on guided hikes, visit world-class sanctuaries, explore small picturesque villages, or take day trips to the wine region of southern Piedmont or to major cultural centers like Milan or Turin.

There is also an artist studio space 30-minutes away by car at Casa Regis - Center for culture and contemporary art. www.casaregis.org

The villa is owned by Italian husband Simone and American wife, L. Mikelle Standbridge, artist/founder of Casa Regis: Center for Culture and Contemporary Art, Italy.

The couple is willing to invite a selected group of creatives and intellectuals each summer for a few weeks to extend their studio practices. Individuals working in cultural research, music composition, film, photography, literary arts, critical thinking, and applied art in certain cases would be ideal candidates to stay as a visitor in this historical treasure.

Whatever your medium might be, I believe you could feel equally inspired as I have when staying at this historical and engaging villa. A place in my experience where time stands still and creative passages take flight. I am currently working on a series of collages that are influenced by the design of the villa and am returning in August 2020 to continue my pursuit. Not only doing a photoshoot in the villa but also drawing botany of the area.

If any part of this exposé resonates with your studio practice, feel free to contact me with any questions you may have.

Website: https://standonthebridge.wixsite.com/mysite-portfolio
Contact: Victoria Chapman
Email: victoria@vcprojects.art
Telephone: 949.291.9499

Please contact me for details on deposits, reservations, and house guidelines as well as for help with planning your trip. Founder, L. Mikelle Standbridge would also be happy to assist with any special interests you may require. L. Mikelle and I can help you create a personalized art journey tailored to the kind of inspiration you might be looking for. For instance, we can assist you with finding resources for procuring natural dyes, (which this area is known for), photographing glorious or industrial architecture, hunting down local artisan objects, walking in the crisp mountain air up to picturesque vistas, studying legendary local artists, or being led through museums with contemporary art collections and installations hosted in ex-castles.

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WWW.VCPROJECTS.ART - Assisting artists and curators
Victoria Chapman: Founder/Director
victoria@vcprojects.art