Now in her 21st year teaching art at Fredonia Central School, Noody had never traveled outside of the United States prior to her trip to Italy. “I belong to this art teacher group on Facebook, and there are thousands of us,” she told the OBSERVER in an interview at her studio, which occupies the entire second floor of her garage. “Someone posted something about attending classes at the La Romita School of Art a few years prior.”

After a bit of research, Noody learned about the school’s intriguing history and opportunities. “La Romita is in an old monastery,” she explained. “Then it was a family’s summer home, and they decided to turn it into a school of art about 50 years ago. When they started the school, they wanted educators to have access, but they knew cost would be a factor because it is expensive to go.”

Noody was awarded the Delores Levine Memorial Scholarship, which is specifically for art educators to attend a 10-day workshop at the all-inclusive school, which is open from May to October. “They have workshops for artists and writers that anyone can take,” she explained. “They pick you up from the airport and bring you to the site. There’s a chef on staff who prepares all of your meals. Each day, they take you to a different place for excursions.”

With the full support of her school district, Noody took two weeks off at the beginning of last school year for her workshop in textured acrylics, which — though not her first choice — “was honestly perfect for me,” she said. Throughout her 10 days at La Romita, Noody and her 17 classmates toured nearby villages, where they studied the scenery and the architecture for inspiration.

OBSERVER Photo by Mary Heyl Brandy Noody is the featured artist for the month of September at the Blue Plate Studio in North Tonawanda. Her exhibit includes paintings inspired by her trip to Italy, such as this work.

The workshop was taught by California-based artist Debra Bonsack and involved capturing the various textures of rural Italy. “I start with an orange-primed piece of canvas to let the warm glow of light shine through the piece,” Noody began. “The next step is sketching out the composition with a Sharpie. Then, I put a layer of molding paste over top of it. Once that dries, I build up the texture and layers and start to establish relief in the modeling paste.”

Interestingly, the workshop drew on Noody’s dual passions for painting and three-dimensional work, as her bachelor’s degree at Alfred University and master’s degree at SUNY Fredonia included painting and ceramics. “Textured acrylics is like a mesh of painting and relief sculpture at the same time,” Noody explained. “There’s a lot of work to build up the surface before you even get to the point of applying paint. Everything that we saw in Italy was ancient. That texture really lends itself to what I saw in the process, and that’s why the workshop was really perfect for me.”

Noody’s favorite excursion was to Orvieto to tour the ancient “underground city” of Etruscan Velzna. “The Roman Coliseum is really impressive, but they have a smaller version from the year 1 A.D.,” Noody said. “You could walk and sit on the seats and go underneath. It was incredible to be up close to something so ancient.”

Throughout her trip, Noody created an art journal, “a combo of record keeping, sketching and collaging.” Her journal pages included photos, sketches, maps, ticket stubs and more. “As I’m getting older, I find I don’t remember everything,” she laughed. “This is the way that I make it concrete and create that strong connection to my brain. Each day I was there, I committed some time to doing a page.”

The busy mom of two has been art journaling for the past 10 years. “What inspired me was becoming a mom,” she told the OBSERVER. “…There was a piece of me that really had to be creative, but I had to fit it into being a new mom. The easiest way to do it was to have something I could pick up, easily leave and come back to. Every time we travel, I’d collect these bits and pieces, and it’s evolved into this process. It’s constantly changing.”

Upon her return, Noody’s students were excited to see photos from her trip and learn about her experience. “In Italy, I was a learner all over again with this new technique,” she reflected. “It really pushed me totally outside my comfort zone. It brought it back to what it was like to be a student again, which really relates to the students sitting in my classroom at Fredonia.”

Last school year, Noody embedded the new technique into her curriculum and shared it in a class she taught for area teachers. She also exhibited two of her Italy pieces in an art educators’ exhibit, where she was approached by Karen Lee Lewis, owner of Blue Plate Studio.

“She asked me if I wanted to do a one-person show,” Noody said. “For me to paint and teach and be a full-time mom, it’s really sort of challenging for me to get that time to dedicate to making art. Once I finally made that decision, I committed the time, and I’m really glad I did.”

Throughout the month of September, Noody’s textured acrylic work is on display at Blue Plate Studio, which is located at 69 Keil St. in North Tonawanda. On Saturday at 10 a.m., she is teaching a workshop, “Creating Textured Artworks,” at the studio to share the technique she learned at La Romita. For more information, follow The Blue Plate Studio on Facebook or email Lewis at kleelew@aol.com.

Interestingly, what Noody thought was a once-in-a-lifetime experience in Italy has turned into another opportunity. This time, however, she is going to La Romita as the teacher, not the student. “I loved the trip, everything about it,” she said. “I approached the people who run the school and asked if they’d ever thought about offering a class just for art educators. They’d never done that before. Now, next summer I’m leading a workshop!”

From July 21 to July 28, Noody is leading the art educators’ retreat, which will offer almost 50 hours of professional development through an immersive experience at La Romita. “It’s going to be about linking the region to curriculum,” Noody explained. “Italy is rich in art and history — how could you teach it in your class? For example with fresco painting, we’ll look at it from an art history perspective, but also as a faux painting technique. We’re going to look at where we travel and relate it back to the classroom.”

Noody’s experience in Italy reminded her of the importance of staying inspired, both as an artist and a teacher. “My own work goes hand-in-hand with what I teach my students,” she told the OBSERVER. “When you do anything you love for a career, if you start to get bored with it, it’s going to kill your passion. Teaching is the same way, and that’s why I’m constantly looking for new inspiration. As I learn new things, I want to share them in my classroom.”