Traveling Sketchbook Series
Barcelona is the inspiration
Your sketchbook is the destination
Get ready to sketch, paint and lose yourself in a city filled with dragon scales, stained-glass windows, hidden courtyards, cathedral light and the kind of details that make artists accidentally miss lunch.
With Marenthe Otten
Artist. Author. Named one of the world’s 100 most visionary artists by Phaidon.
✅ Lifetime access
“I love what Marenthe has created. It’s intriguing and inspiring and takes me out of my comfort zone. Amen to that!”
- Renee Pastolove, Art Therapy and Counseling, New York
Imagine Barcelona basically throwing all this creative insanity straight into your lap while you casually open your sketchbook.
• Videos that make you want to immediately abandon your sensible adult life and run off to Barcelona with twelve sketchbooks, and absolutely zero self-control.
• Assignments that turn your brain into a tiny fireworks show of strange color combinations and “WAIT! I need to draw that before I die.”
• We wander through palaces that look like they were designed by a otherworldly genius (no wait, a GOD).
You make patterns. Zines. Collages. Painted art journals. Sketches that feel loose, alive and slightly intoxicated by Barcelona.
• We visit an ancient garage transformed into a wildly beautiful restaurant and hand-letter a Spanish recipe.
• We follow the story of the thirteen geese like a bunch of artist detectives with glitter on our hands. Speaking of glitter: there will be a deeply irresponsible amount of glitter.
• We dismantle markers like creative little goblins to see what happens when your inner artist stops behaving properly.
• We visit a hypermodern museum that makes your brain short-circuit in the best possible way.
• We step into ancient churches where the air smells like stone, wax and mystery.
And then: the cathedral.
Your inner critic quietly evaporates into the ceiling somewhere around minute seven. Meanwhile, you sit there in a trance, trying to process all that impossible beauty in your sketchbook like the emotionally overwhelmed art addict you’ve become.
• A ridiculous amount of visual inspiration.
• Lifetime access. Because obviously.
• And an international community full of sketchbook-loving weirdos who completely understand why you just painted the same tiled floor fourteen times.
“I don’t know what I would do if these classes weren’t in my life. I enjoy them so much!”
- Jody Buck, cattle rancher, mixed media artist, Colorado
What else does Barcelona promise?
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A bench that ruined ordinary benches forever
Some people visit Barcelona just to see it. You’ll turn it into art.
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Floors that deserve their own fan club
Look down and suddenly you’re sketching octopuses, sea snails and starfish instead of watching where you’re going.
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A cathedral that ate the rainbow
When sunlight pours through these windows, your color palette may never recover. Neither will you.
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Picasso had absolutely no chill
Faces on plates. Faces on vases. Faces doing things faces were never meant to do. Naturally, you’ll paint your own.
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A hospital that is showing off
This hospital looks like a fairytale had a very generous budget.
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The towers that escaped a fever dream
Crooked. Playful. Slightly ridiculous. Which is exactly why we love them.
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A treasure cabinet for curious people
Keys. Fans. Opera glasses. Forgotten objects with mysterious past lives. The perfect ingredients for wonderfully odd drawings.
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A recipe worth illustrating
Somewhere between lunch and art class, things take a deliciously unexpected turn.
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Thirteen geese and one very strange story
A medieval legend, a cathedral and a flock of surprisingly important birds. Trust me on this one.
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A project that brings everything together
Turns out you’ve been preparing for it all along.
20 lessons with assignments, including 12 full-length artwork tutorials with 6.5+ hours of video content.
And this is only the beginning.
“I love my favorite art teacher! She never disappoints my curiosity in what I can bring to the paper and coaches me in ways to grow my inner artist.”
- Tasha McGinn, wine paintings & expressive acrylics
Artwork, made by our students:
Sharon Nullmeyer
Claire Cordier
Daan Wokke
Christine Morra-de Barrelet
Claire Cordier
Belinda de Snoo
Daan Wokke
Alexandra Koenders
Belinda de Snoo
Claire Cordier
Elin Stoodley
Claire Cordier
Hendriek Mulder
Esther Lammers
Kirsten Wiltens
Jody Buck
Hendriek Mulder
Claire Cordier
Kirsten Wiltens
Louise van der Merwe
Claire Cordier
Corinne Hodgson
Lulubelle Summers
Guy Merrill
Marion Heres
Margreet van der Kleij
Enid Johnstone
Louise van der Merwe
Margreet van der Kleij
Lulubelle Summers
Marjo Mälkönen
Mo Nica
Marion Heres
Marjo Mälkönen
Marlie Meyer
Lulubelle Summers
Marjo Mälkönen
Mo Nica
Rene Pastolove
Mo Nica
Mo Nica
Sara Coulter
Svenny Santos
Sharon Nullmeyer
Steffi Tappertzhofen
Tasha McGinn
Steffi Tappertzhofen
Steffi Tappertzhofen
Susanlora Morris
Zoe York
Suzanne van der Lee
Svenny Santos
Tasha McGinn
“It’s wonderful to have continuity and to make art alongside people from all over the world. It’s truly something to look forward to.”
- Sharon Nullmeyer, professional artist
“Every new assignment felt like unwrapping a gift.”
- Rosa, artist
“What a wonderfully positive energy. So much inspiration and so many talented art sisters. It felt like a party.”
- Kristianne Engelen, artist, musician
“I thought my work wouldn’t be good enough, but I learned so much. I’ve grown as an artist.”
- Penny, artist
“I loved getting fresh inspiration every day. The assignments were wonderful. I tried new materials, the videos were inspiring and genuinely educational.”
- Lisa, artist
“It exceeded my expectations.”
- Julie Wood, artist
“Marenthe’s joy is contagious.”
- Dot, artist
“This course made me create art every single day. It helped me enormously in finding my own style.”
- Anata Uges, professional artist
“The subjects in this course were phenomenal.”
- Sara
Meanwhile, creative weirdos from all over the world are already gathering in the community.
Hi, I’m Marenthe.
30% artist. 30% adventurer. 30% storyteller. 10% chocolate. (Priorities.)
I never go anywhere without my sketchbook. It's practically glued to my arm while I wander through cities, dive into museums, and scour markets for things nobody else notices.
For me, traveling and creating are the same word.
I've been doing this for over 30 years. Worked with big names at home and abroad. Won international awards in New York, Tokyo, and London. My work was included in The Hundred Most Visionary Artists of the World and is part of the collection of the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam.
But that’s not why you’re here.
You’re here because I see differently. I smell stories. Taste atmosphere. Notice what you walk right past. And I’ll teach you to do the same.
I’ll get your hands moving. I’ll silence that annoying little voice in your head. I’ll show you how to look, the way only an artist can.
I can’t wait to meet you.
One-Time Gaudí Deal ☀️
Pick Your Payment Vibe 💥
€247
One payment
Lifetime access.
€130
Two monthly payments
Lifetime access.
€90
Three monthly payments
Lifetime access.
Q&A
How long is the course?
Four gloriously Barcelona-soaked weeks. You can jump in immediately.
How long do I have access?
Lifetime access.
I’ve been to Barcelona before. Is this course still interesting for me?
Absolutely.
Most people visit Barcelona. Artists start emotionally bonding with drainpipes, towers and tiled sidewalks they suddenly want to marry.
I’m a perfectionist. And honestly? I'm a little nervous. Is this course right for me?
Deeply. Barcelona is wildly inconvenient for perfectionists. Your inner critic is going to have a rough little vacation.
Do I get personal feedback from Marenthe?
Not in a “now let us carefully evaluate your shading technique” kind of way. But yes, Marenthe is present in the community and absolutely sees what people create.
Is there a live component?
The live Zooms already happened.
Good news: you still get the recordings, the lessons, the inspiration and the full creative fever dream.
What level do I need to be?
Any.
Whether you’ve never touched a paintbrush or already own seventeen suspiciously expensive art supplies, you’re welcome here.
What if I fall behind?
Impossible.
You have lifetime access. Barcelona will still be there. Looking dramatic.
How much time do I need per day?
Thirty minutes a day can absolutely change your sketchbook. Three hours a day may cause temporary loss of household productivity.
What materials do I need?
Nothing outrageously fancy. No worries. You will be fine.
Is this a completely new course?
It first ran in 2022. This version is bigger, richer, prettier and significantly more emotionally damaging to boring sketchbooks.
How is this different from your other courses?
This one revolves entirely around Barcelona.
This is learning how to see like an artist inside one of the most visually unhinged cities on earth.