Download Brochure for more details

 

DATES: Check in 20th October 2026, check out 24th October 2026

LOCATION: Monastero dell’Incoronata, Nardo’, Italy

LANGUAGE: English, with the possibility of Italian translation.

LIMITED PLACES AVAILABLE

PRICE: £3,300 _Vat not applicable ( includes flowers, materials, accommodation in single room, breakfast, lunch, dinner)

 

THE WORKSHOP 

 

An immersive 3-day (4 nights) experience combining intensive floral design training with the atmosphere of an exclusive retreat in a historic monastery in Southern Italy.

Dedicated to individual compositions, large-scale installations, bouquet design, and table styling, the program brings together technique, study of materials, observation, and creative exploration to help participants develop a personal language that is essential, intentional, and rooted in the medium.

 

LUCE – the Italian word for “light” – is a space for practice and observation, where it is not only atmosphere but also a method a way of seeing that reveals form and structure, while also bringing one’s own creative identity to light.

Hosted within a historic monastery and lived collectively over four days, LUCE offers the opportunity to step away from everyday routines and fully immerse oneself in flowers, technique, theory, architecture, light, food, conversation, and creative practice, reconnecting with creativity, curiosity, and a deeper sense of purpose in one’s work.

 

WHAT YOU WILL LEARN

 

ANATOMY OF THE MEDIUM 

Deconstruct, interrogate, and understand floral material beyond traditional floristry rules. Learn how to work with flowers and foliage in unexpected ways, discovering their natural shapes, strengths, and movement, letting the material dictate the architecture of your work.

 

MONUMENTAL SITE-SPECIFIC INSTALLATIONS 

Discover the principles and structures behind large-scale botanical installations. Working together, we will explore practical techniques for building immersive botanical structures and mechanics that physically alter the atmosphere of a space.

 

THE ANTIDOTE TO TRENDS 

Move beyond trends and social media-driven aesthetics. Move beyond trends and discover your own creative voice through exploration, experimentation, and a deeper understanding of context and inspiration, you will explore a personal design style that feels authentic and meaningful.

 

EXPERIMENTAL & INVISIBLE MECHANICS 

Learn sustainable alternatives to traditional mechanics. Discover more sustainable and inventive structural frameworks: innovative, low-impact mechanics that support and elevate massive floral weight without choking its natural force.

 

RADICAL COLOR & TEXTURAL PAIRING 

Develop eye for matching unexpected materials together. Explore how clashing or fluid textures, complex color friction, and seasonal anomalies can be manipulated to build visceral tension and deep spatial storytelling.

 

EVENT CURATION & CONTEXTUAL FLOW 

Create floral pieces that connect with and respond to the event space. Develop skills in reading architectural environments, understanding visual flow, and integrating floral work into the overall story of an event.

 

THE SCHEDULE

 

DAY 1 _ Individual Practice: 2 sessions of Sculpture Arrangement & Experimental Mechanics 

Two sessions dedicated to individual practice, focusing on building compositions as true floral sculptures. Through demonstrations and hands-on exploration, participants investigate the relationship between structure, tension, materials, and mechanics. Within the context of LUCE, the work focuses on sculptural arrangements and an investigation of materials and their possibilities. Botanical elements, supports, and mechanics are studied and manipulated to create balance, movement, and form. Across the two sessions, the practice remains process-oriented, aimed at finding a personal language through trial, adjustments, and intuition. Gesture becomes a tool for construction, while technique opens itself to experimentation.

 

DAY 2 _ Large Scale Installation

A session dedicated to creating a large-scale floral installation, focusing on movement, spatial balance, and storytelling. Within the context of the LUCE workshop, participants develop an immersive floral environment through the observation of the monastery itself, its architecture, surfaces, materials, light, and atmosphere. The installation emerges from a dialogue with the place, taking shape as a site-specific intervention connected to the history, identity, and aesthetic character of the space. The installation is not a static object, but a living organism in balance: a composition that breathes, opens up, and defines itself through gesture.

 

DAY 3 _ MORNING SESSION Bouquet Class 

A session dedicated to bouquets/personal flowers. Drawing from local botanicals, tradition, and culture, the class explores how floral pieces carried, worn, or experienced in relation to the body can become expressions of place, identity, and cultural heritage. Through the observation of materials, proportion, movement, and gesture, participants investigate the relationship between botanical materials and personal expression, developing forms that respond to both the body and the landscape from which they emerge.

 

DAY 3 _ AFTERNOON SESSION Table Styling 

A table styling session focused on harmonious composition and measured abundance. As part of the LUCE journey, the work explores the table as a narrative space: botanical compositions, vessels, objects, and selected props are brought together to shape a balanced and immersive arrangement, where every element contributes to the overall reading of the whole. Particular attention is given to rhythm, proportion, atmosphere, and the relationship between individual elements and the broader composition. The table is approached not simply as a decorative object, but as an environment capable of conveying presence, intention, and mood. The process becomes a reflection on rhythm, proportion, and presence, aiming to create a setting where the composition is not merely observed, but inhabited.

 

THE INSTRUCTORS

 

Two distinct floral voices, united by a shared belief: that flowers can become a contemporary cultural medium for expression, communication and identity.

 

Federica Carlini Federica is an Italian floral designer based between London and Italy, working internationally. Her practice, both artistic and educational, focuses on the sociocultural value of flowers and natural elements in everyday life. Through botanical design, installations and table styling, organic materials become a medium of expression and communication, connecting culture, nature and human essence. With a background in economics, sustainable design and event production, she developed her practice across editorial, event and studio contexts. She joined the floral team at LOEWE Flores in Madrid and has taught internationally, including at London Flower School. Her work explores flowers as a visual and artistic language, shaping experiences that celebrate essential forms, materials and human expression, while building a dialogue between cultural roots and the environment.

 

Fiore Brado Caterina is a floral and visual designer based in Italy, working at the intersection of botany, art, and spatial design. Trained in design and art direction, after more than twenty years leading luxury communication studio, her practice evolved into Fiorebrado—a name that evokes wild flowers and reflects an approach grounded in spontaneous materials and a natural, never forced, aesthetic. While deeply rooted in the study of natural structures and materials, her work unfolds into a contemporary aesthetic that regards the botanical element as a form of cultural expression rather than mere decoration. Flowers thus become a contemporary visual language through which to investigate the zeitgeist and questions of identity.

 

THE VENUE

 

The workshop will take place at the Monastero dell’Incoronata, a place shaped by a silent grace.

 

REACHING THE VENUE 

 

40 minutes from Brindisi Airport 

90 minutes from Bari Airport 

 

Reaching the Monastero dell’Incoronata is extremely straightforward, making it an easily accessible sanctuary for both domestic and international participants.

 

Built in the 16th century and later entrusted to the Augustinian Order in 1634, the Monastery is a place filled with gratia: calm, balanced, never excessive. Its architecture does not seek attention, but reveals itself through the proportion, rhythm, and harmony of its internal courtyards, its arcaded spaces, and the magnificent 17th-century cloister around which the rooms are arranged.

Beauty here is neither decorative nor symbolic. It emerges from measured relationships between spaces: the introverted courtyards, the historic halls dedicated to workshops, and the intimate spaces of the monastic rooms, restored with deep respect for the original structure to preserve its sacred atmosphere.

 

Outside, two lush gardens flourishing with medicinal, ancient, and rare plants enhance the sense of serenity and timeless beauty. It is an environment that naturally fosters concentration, discipline, and close observation—essential conditions that allow artistic work to unfold with clarity and depth. Within these secluded spaces, designed to disconnect from the noise of daily life and reconnect with oneself, focus intensifies and distractions fade creating an ideal atmosphere for refined, attentive, and profound work.

 

ACCOMMODATION 

 

From monastic cells to rooms of quiet Mediterranean hospitality.

 

YOUR STAY (4 NIGHTS):

• Exclusive Private Room
• Ensuite bathroom
• Breakfast each morning
• Shared lunches throughout the workshop
• Shared dinners and final convivial dinner

Recently transformed into a hospitality retreat, the Monastero dell’Incoronata offers the rare opportunity to inhabit a place that remained closed to the public for centuries. Throughout the workshop, participants will stay within the monastery itself, experiencing its rhythms, silence and architecture from within.

The original monastic cells have been thoughtfully reimagined as guest rooms while preserving the spirit of the building. Vaulted ceilings, limewashed walls and historic architectural details remain an integral part of the experience. Each room is unique and furnished with carefully selected vintage pieces and local Mediterranean objects. All rooms feature private bathrooms and offer a quiet, intimate atmosphere designed for rest, reflection and creative focus.

 

THE CITY 

 

A journey through Nardò and Salento: landscape, craft and Mediterranean culture.

Located just outside the historic town of Nardò, the Monastero dell’Incoronata offers a privileged gateway to one of the most distinctive landscapes of Southern Italy. Surrounded by centuries-old olive groves, limestone architecture and the crystal-clear waters of the Ionian Sea, the region preserves a strong connection between nature, craftsmanship and daily life. The character of this territory informs the workshop itself. Its light, materials, colours and enduring craft traditions provide a rich cultural backdrop for the creative process, offering a distinctly Mediterranean sense of place.

 

THE MEDITERRANEAN TABLE 

 

In Salento, food is more than cuisine, it is a cultural ritual. Seasonal produce, olive oil, handmade pasta and a deep tradition of hospitality reflect a way of life rooted in landscape, community and celebration.

 

THE BAROQUE OF SALENTO 

 

Across Nardò and Lecce, architecture becomes a celebration of stone, light and ornament. Elaborate façades and sculpted details reveal a centuries-old tradition of craftsmanship that continues to define the cultural identity of the region.

 

THE EXPERIENCE 

 

This is more than a workshop, a carefully curated pause.

A moment to step away from routine, reconnect with your practice, and experience a different rhythm. Time to focus, to create, and to see more clearly. And, perhaps most importantly, time to slow down and experience the golden light and autumn colours of Puglia.

 

• Two distinct floral voices.
• One contemporary approach.
• Thoughtful theory.
• Seasonal flowers & sustainable mechanics
• Portfolio-ready Pictures
• Rooted in Italy,
• Hands-on practice shaped by contemporary culture.
• A Venue of quiet Italian charm

 

WORKSHOP INFOS & PARTICIPATION 

 

£ 3300,00 VAT not applicable

 

INCLUDED

 

• 4-night stay Exclusive Private Room Accommodation

• Check in 20th Oct – Check Out 24th Oct

• Food & beverages included

• All materials and tools

• Seasonal flowers, fruits and botanical materials

• Technical equipment and structural support

• Training with an international team of instructors

• Final certificate of participation

 

RESERVE YOUR PLACE 

 

A 50% deposit of  £ 1650,00 is required to secure your place. 

The remaining balance is due two months before the beginning of the workshop.

Payments are made via bank transfer. Bank details will be provided upon booking confirmation.

Please note that all payments are non-refundable. If you are unable to attend, your place may be transferred to another participant, subject to prior approval by the organisers.

The workshop is limited in capacity. Early registration is strongly recommended.

Note that the course will be confirmed upon reaching a minimum of 10 participants. In case of cancellation due to insufficient enrollment, a full refund will be issued.