The art of an Italian lifestyle with artist Elizabeth Orchard

“I love the seasons in Tuscany,” says Elizabeth. “They provide a real pattern to life and unlike in the UK, they are dependable. Holidaymakers who come in summer only might find it too hot or too crowded, but when you live here, you understand the seasons and appreciate how to act, dressing in linens and silk in the warmer months and leather and puffa jackets in the winter. April is just heavenly, May is full of roses and in summer, if it is too hot, you have a siesta. I put umbrellas over my plants to shield them from the sun and make a small, simple kitchen outside, with a fridge, oven and kettle. I can eat outside under my gazebo happily until mid-November.”

Elizabeth has two daughters, one based in London and one in Tuscany, and travels frequently. She spends around half the year in Italy where, as well as undertaking artistic commissions, she has a busy social life. “Florence is stuffed full of interesting international people, and I’ve never found it difficult to make friends. I recommend the regular lectures at the British Institute. They are fabulously interesting and a good way to meet people, and their library has acres of good books. I love to entertain too, buying everything in the local market and can seat fourteen in my soggiorno (living room).”