Click below to discover the next available dates and reserve your place.
Book your place Book your placeThere is something missing. And we all feel it.
We have never been more connected, more informed, more stimulated.
And yet something is absent.
Something difficult to name, but clearly felt in the relentless pace of our days, in the constant sensation of moving fast without knowing exactly where.
There is something deep we are losing. And the sad thing is that we rarely notice.
Our hands are increasingly still.
We type, scroll, tap. These are gestures, yes, but they are fast, repetitive, and they leave no trace.
Real manual work, the kind that requires time, attention and presence, has almost entirely disappeared from the daily lives of most of us.
And with it goes something essentially human: the ability to transform matter, to see the result of a gesture, to feel between your fingers the weight of something you are creating.
We are more connected than ever, yet increasingly distant from ourselves.
Screens, speed, performance: everything asks us to be elsewhere, to do more, to produce more.
And in all this noise, the part of us that only knows how to work with its hands remains silent. Forgotten. Waiting.
When the hands work, something reconnects.
There is a reason why, throughout history, human beings have found in the manual arts something no other activity can offer.
Karl Jaspers, a psychiatrist working at the end of the nineteenth century, was among the first to study the therapeutic effects of painting on mental illness. One of his patients was Van Gogh. The artist's words became famous:
"I pick up a pencil and everything changes."
- Vincent van Gogh
This is not a romantic metaphor. It is a precise description of what happens when the hands begin to work. The mind slows. Perception sharpens. Something inside reconnects.
Working with the hands re-educates the coordination between eye and hand: a process that seems simple but cascades through the way we perceive space, matter, and our own emotions. It is not a technical exercise. It is a profoundly human one.
I thought about this for a long time, and at a certain point I understood that my atelier, Oro & Disegni, could become something more than it was: it could move from being my personal creative space to becoming an exclusive shared one.
A place where not only I could stop and put my hands to work on something beautiful, and find myself again in that gesture.
That is how the workshops were born.
What the paper gilding workshop involves
The workshop centres on paper gilding: the technique that, together with drawing, sits at the heart of everything I make. Here, you will learn its foundations and make them your own.
The Origin
Theoretical and historical introduction: where gilding comes from and why this ancient gesture is still so contemporary.
The Gesture
Working on original prints, I will guide you through the manual application of imitation gold leaf, at your own natural pace.
The Creation
Not a souvenir, but an object with a story. We will conclude with an aperitif to admire the works created together.
Everything you need to know before booking
The workshop costs € 200 per person, materials and aperitivo included.
For those who would like to purchase the gilding kit, it will be available at €150, instead of the public price of €200. The kit includes everything you need to continue practising at home, along with three prints ready to gild.
Places are a minimum of 2 and a maximum of 4 per session. This is a deliberate choice, born from the desire to give each person the same quality of attention I bring to my own work, and to transmit the foundations of this extraordinary discipline properly. When places are gone, they are gone.
Where you will learn to gild: a living atelier in the heart of Venice.
The workshops take place in my atelier, Oro & Disegni, in Campo Santa Maria Nova, Sestiere Cannaregio 6043/B, in the heart of Venice. This is my actual workspace, where I create and exhibit my original works.
You will find yourself surrounded by drawings in progress, the light shifting across the campo, the quiet of a corner of the city that mass tourism has not yet entirely reached. Not a classroom, not a neutral studio; a living atelier, with everything that entails.
Click below to discover the available dates. If you cannot find a date that works for you, or would like to arrange a private session, get in touch and we will find the right moment together.
What people are saying about the workshop
To recap...
Duration
About 2.5 - 3 hours with the artist Stefania Dei Rossi
Location
Atelier Oro & Disegni, Campo Santa Maria Nova, Sestiere Cannaregio 6043/B, Venice.
Availability
Min 2, max 4 people per session - spots available while they last.
Price
€200 per person, materials and aperitif included
Click below to discover the next available dates and reserve your place.
If you have any questions or would like to know more before booking, you can reach us by email or WhatsApp. You will find the contact details by clicking the button above.
Frequently asked questions
Is this workshop for you?
This workshop is not designed for artists, nor for those who already have experience with gilding.
You do not need to know how to draw, nor to have ever held a sheet of gold leaf.
It is designed for those who wish to pause and create something beautiful with their own hands; for those seeking an authentic experience that will remain with them over time; for those curious to approach an ancient art within a real and meaningful setting.
What if you would you like to continue at home?
Once the workshop is complete and you have learned the foundations of the technique, a complete gilding kit will be available to purchase: the same tools used during the course, together with three prints by Stefania Dei Rossi, ready to be gilded.
The price reserved for workshop participants is €150, instead of the public retail price of €200.
Questions or special requests?
If you have any questions before booking, or would like to arrange a private session, you are welcome to contact us by email at info@stefaniadeirossi.comor via WhatsApp at +39 351 996 0680.