This extraordinary private property is located on a ridge 45 feet above the Caribbean. The views of both oceans are truly breathtaking. From the large windows and extensive decks, you can watch the sun rise over the Atlantic and set over the Caribbean.
Buttonwood Reserve Estate is situated on 50 private acres, with beaches on both sides of the property. On the Atlantic side, Buttonwood has a world-class, 3-mile-long pink-sand beach, pristine, without a single house on it. This Atlantic side beach is accessed via the private, golf-carts only driveway. The property comes with a fleet of golf carts. This miles-long beach is virtually private, because the only other access is a rough and little used jeep track half a mile to the south. On the Caribbean side of the property, almost in your front yard, is a second beach, which has excellent snorkeling, kayaking, paddle boarding, and fishing. There is a gorgeous heated pool and lounge area just steps away from your room. A newly built central beach lodge is overlooking the ocean is great for lazy evenings. The estate also has a great new pickleball court and a full fitness center.
Eleuthera is a painter’s paradise, offering a wealth of diverse subjects to explore. The island’s pink and white sand beaches, dramatic limestone cliffs, and sculpted rock formations create striking compositions, while its colonial-era cottages, pastel-colored homes, and historic churches provide rich architectural studies. The picturesque towns of Governor’s Harbour and Harbour Island showcase charming verandas, colorful shutters, and cobblestone streets that reflect the island’s unique Bahamian heritage.
For those drawn to seascapes, Eleuthera’s ever-changing ocean vistas provide an unparalleled study of light and movement. The Glass Window Bridge, where the deep blue Atlantic meets the calm turquoise Caribbean, is a particularly stunning scene to capture. Additionally, the island’s lush tropical foliage, sunlit palm fronds, weathered fishing boats, and vibrant flowers offer endless opportunities for artists to explore color, texture, and form.
Eleuthera’s dramatic coastline and luminous light have long captivated artists, including the legendary Winslow Homer, who visited the Bahamas in the 1880s and painted its striking seascapes. His iconic watercolors of the region capture the island’s dynamic skies, powerful waves, and brilliant tropical hues, making Eleuthera an inspiring destination for painters seeking to follow in his footsteps.
Throughout the retreat, Haidee-Jo Summers and Joe Gyurcsak will provide personalized instruction, helping artists refine their skills in plein air painting, composition, and capturing light. Whether painting grand landscapes, intimate street scenes, or the delicate interplay of nature’s details, participants will be fully immersed in creativity while enjoying full catering and a thoughtfully curated experience.
To ensure a seamless experience, transportation to and from the airport is provided, along with transportation for two painting excursions to some of Eleuthera’s most stunning locations. These off-site painting sessions will offer artists the opportunity to explore and capture even more of the island’s breathtaking scenery.
Designed for artists of all levels, this retreat offers inspiration, expert guidance, and the camaraderie of fellow painters in one of the most breathtaking locations in the Bahamas. Whether you seek to expand your plein air practice, explore new techniques, or simply paint in paradise, this eight-day experience promises to be both enriching and unforgettable.
Haidee-Jo is a full-time professional artist known for painting landscapes and seascapes ‘en plein air’. Vice President of the Royal Institute of Oil painters (ROI) and an elected member of the Royal Society of Marine Artists (RSMA) her work can be seen each year at the Mall Galleries in London in these prestigious society exhibitions.
Haidee-Jo writes regularly for The Artist magazine and is proud to be one of their editorial consultants, alongside David Curtis ROI RSMA. Her first book on oil painting, ‘Vibrant Oils’ (published by Search Press), has been reprinted in Spanish, Italian, French and Chinese. Her second book, Plein air painting in oils, has been released in spring 2022 in English and Russian language versions. She has produced two popular DVDs with APV films. Although oils are very much her preferred medium, in the 1990’s Haidee-Jo produced a large body of work for the Encyclopaedia of Watercolour Techniques and is an avid sketcher. In recent years she has been invited to judge UK and international plein air events, after winning many prizes for her work which features fresh and vibrant brushwork coupled with keen drawing and observational skills.
Haidee-Jo gained a degree in illustration following an art foundation course and graduated in 1994. She has been exhibiting and teaching ever since, in recent years having cut back on teaching commitments to focus on painting and writing. She believes very much in continuing to grow and develop, all the while striving to express her personal voice in paint and to do so more and more succinctly.
‘My work is a celebration of light filled moments revealed in rich and vibrant oil paint using my personal visual language of fresh and direct brushmarks. Painting en plein air is central to my practice but I am equally at home working from a model, still life or interior. I find beauty in the ordinary, mundane and intimate rather than the grand vista. Coastal locations, domestic interiors and gardens and allotments provide me with rich and endless subject material.
My approach is one of simplicity and economy, striving to make every mark count in my earnest pursuance of capturing the poetry of a fleeting effect of light.’
January 31st- February 7th 2026 With Award winning artists Haidee-Jo Summers and Joe Gyurcsak
7 day Immersive Plein-Air Workshop
Skill level Beginner to Advanced
January 31st-February 7th With Award Winning Artists Joe Gyurcsak and Haidee-Jo Summers
7 day Immersive Plein Air painting workshop
In 1990, Joe Gyurcsak left a successful illustration career to pursue a fine art path.
“I had a born again experience as an artist when I first saw natural light on subjects in the open air. It changed my way of thinking and creating, I had made the leap into the plein air painting experience.”
Since then Joe has participated in the all of the top plein Air events in the US. Atlanta, Door County Wisconsin, Laguna Beach CA, Bucks County PA, Easton MD, Texas and the Plein Air Convention as a faculty member. In 2017 he was awarded Grand Prize winner at Plein Air Easton and Gloucester VA Plein Air Competitions. He is also featured in The 100 Plein Air Painters of the Mid-Atlantic book and Eric Rhodes Plein Air Podcasts.
Joe is a highly regarded instructor who has authored articles and lectured / demonstrated throughout the US at more than 160 major art institutions. He is the Resident Artist for Blick / Utrecht Art Materials as well as a member of the Salmagundi Club, He holds Signature status with the following organizations: International Society of Acrylic Painters, Oil Painters of America and American Impressionist Societies.
Supplies
French Easel or pochade box, portable chair if need be,
Easel umbrellas
Sun screen, bug and tick spray,
Sun Hat
Comfortable clothing for weather at that time, use neutral colored shirts to cut down on reflection on painting
Canvas: at least 8 small to medium size panels or canvases 8”x10”, 11 x14, 12 x16, 16 x 20 or any others sizes in this range, bring variety, we will do two paintings a day.
Wet paint carriers are recommended
Odorless mineral spirits or Safflower oil to clean brushes in between color changes for oil or water for acrylic /watercolor / gouache, close brush wash can for either
Alkyd mediums in liquid or gel and or linseed oil
Rags for acrylic, paper towels oils & watercolor
Brushes – an assortment of flats and filberts, rounds (short handle synthetic watercolor brushes are best for finishing details in oil and acrylic) (size 2, 4, 8, 10) synthetics or bristle both good
Watercolor either synthetic or sable, rounds 6, 8, cat’s tongue (oval brush) ½”,1”
Medium sized diamond shaped painting Knife and or a blunt palette knife for mixing and applying paint
Suggested watercolor papers cold or rough not larger than 20” x 14”, Arches, Bockingford, Saunders Waterford, The masters choice, blocks are easiest so you don’t have to tape down paper on boards, or to prevent warping) I will show students how to prepare paper to create fluid effects)
Disposable palettes are the easiest for clean up
(Watercolor painters may bring a combination of watercolor and gouache of the following colors)
Cad Lemon Yellow
Cad Yellow Medium
Cad Orange or hue
Cad Red Medium or hue or Naphthol Red
Quinacridone Violet or Red or Alizarin Crimson
Viridian Green Hue (Utrecht Studio Series for oil painters) or Virdian
Sap Green Deep
Dioxazine Purple
Cobalt Blue
Ultramarine Blue
Raw Sienna
Burnt Sienna
Titanium white
Unbleached Titanium or Buff White
Raw Umber
Paynes Gray
Small sketch book for notes and sketches
2b /4b pencil
Kneaded eraser
View finder and cell phone for photos if possible