Upcoming Travel Dates
Finding Inspiration in Every Turn
Travel has always been a huge part of my creative life. I love going new places, learning new techniques, painting alongside incredible artists, and meeting people who share that same pull toward creativity and exploration. These days, some of those trips are about learning, and some are about teaching — workshops, conferences, special events, and classes in places far beyond my own studio.
Every trip brings something valuable with it: new ideas, new approaches, new friendships, and inspiration that often finds its way into future classes and paintings. When I’m traveling to learn from another artist, I love inviting students to come along when space allows. When I’m traveling to teach, I hope those same adventures give students in other places a chance to paint with me, too.
Whenever possible, we also look for ways to make the experience more affordable and enjoyable as a group, sometimes sharing larger rental homes and travel expenses so the trip becomes part workshop, part creative getaway, and part road-trip adventure.
This page is where I’ll share where I’m headed next — whether I’m teaching, learning, painting, or simply gathering with other artists — along with opportunities to join me when it makes sense.
Multiple Instructors
August 8, 2027
Spend a week surrounded by painters, instructors, classes, Make-It-Take-Its, vendors, and creative inspiration at OKC Painting Palooza in Oklahoma City. The 2027 theme is “Holiday Delights,” and the event runs August 8–14 at the Champion Convention Center. Hope recommends Painting Palooza to students who enjoy learning from a variety of decorative painting instructors and spending several days immersed in painting. Hope has submitted projects for consideration for 2027, but her teaching schedule has not yet been confirmed. If she is selected to teach, her individual classes will be added separately once the educator schedule is announced.
Hope Blakely
November 21, 2026
Spend the day painting with artist and Certified Ross Instructor Hope Blakely in this beginner-friendly Joy of Painting class at the Hansen Museum. Hope will guide you step by step through a complete painting using the wet-on-wet oil technique, with plenty of encouragement along the way. The final painting selection for this class is still being chosen by the museum and will be added as soon as it is available. All experience levels are welcome, and you’ll leave with a finished painting of your own.
Dana Jester
October 23, 2026
Join artist and instructor Dana Jester for a two-day wildlife workshop in Winchester, Indiana, painting a detailed wolf using Dana’s layered mixed-media approach. Dana, a longtime friend of Bob Ross and a veteran teacher with decades of experience, is known for taking wet-on-wet foundations far beyond landscapes into highly detailed wildlife and portrait work. This workshop is expected to combine acrylics and oils, with glazing and layered brushwork used to build the wolf’s depth, expression, and many textures of fur. Hope plans to attend and welcomes students who would like to make the trip and paint alongside the group.
Multiple Instructors
April 21, 2027
Head to the Pacific Northwest for four days of decorative painting classes, Make-It-Take-Its, vendors, and time with painters from across the country at the 2027 Pacific Decorative Painters Expo. Hope plans to attend and recommends this event to students who enjoy painting conventions and learning from a variety of instructors. Hope's teaching status for the 2027 expo has not yet been confirmed; if she is selected to teach, her individual classes will be added separately once the schedule is announced.
Hope Blakely
November 22, 2026
Spend the day painting with artist and Certified Ross Instructor Hope Blakely in this beginner-friendly Joy of Painting class at the Hansen Museum. Hope will guide you step by step through a complete painting using the wet-on-wet oil technique, with plenty of encouragement along the way. The final painting selection for this class is still being chosen by the museum and will be added as soon as it is available. All experience levels are welcome, and you’ll leave with a finished painting of your own.