©
with
Davina Stephens
& Anna Kwiecinska
30 JUNE - 10 JULY 2027
Your choice of Accommodation with own room is included
Day 1 - Day 4: SANUR
Arrival day - program starts 6 pm (30th June)
Day 5-11: CANDI DASA (4 -10 July)
departure day - no program
AIRPORT : Denpasar Bali
LOVE PAINTING, BUT LOOKING FOR MORE POSSIBILITIES?
The Vessel: A Journey Through Print, Paint & Materials
This is the perfect mid-winter getaway to design and paint ceramics and plan and paint a large works on canvas and paper.
Discovering Stories Through Objects, Materials and Mark Making
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If this approach appeals to you, then you'll have all that you need to create several ceramic pieces using both carving and painting techniques over 3 full days in a professional ceramics studio with Alessia, our instructor trained at St. Martin's School of Art, London; Then a morning in the studio of artist Davina Stephens, followed by 5 days of art-making with Davina by the sea in Candi Dasa.
At the end of your retreat, you'll take home a large work on paper, a large painting on canvas, at least 3 glazed ceramic objects, including a large bowl, and many works on paper with which you can continue your practice at home.
You can come to this retreat with experience or as a newcomer in both or either fields of ceramics or painting ... we've got you!
See you there!
When we enter a new environment, a new culture, or a new landscape, we have the opportunity to open our eyes differently. We begin to notice the small objects, textures, colours, and offerings that surround us in everyday life.
This retreat invites you to slow down, observe, and discover how ordinary materials can become extraordinary sources of inspiration.
The theme of 'The Vessel' is a doorway into storytelling. A vessel can hold memories, journeys, dreams, and personal narratives. Through print, paint, collage, and mark-making, we will explore how materials can guide us towards creating artwork that grows organically from experience. Rather than beginning with a fixed image in mind, we will allow the artwork to reveal itself through layers, textures, and discoveries.
This new 11-day/10-night retreat offers you the opportunity to gift yourself a richly envisaged art experience by the sea in two beautiful Balinese locations: SANUR and CANDI DASA.
We'll begin not too far from the DENPASAR airport, in Sanur, with 4 nights here, to experience 3 full days at a professional ceramics studio with Anna and your tutor, a graduate of St Martin's School of Art, London (majoring in ceramics). You will learn the technique of carving onto 'green' clay on Day 1 and finish one object, and the following two days you will be painting on 3 objects. (more available if you wish). Your works will all be fired ad presented to you on the final day of the art retreat!
On Day 4, still in SANUR, we spend the morning in a historic studio setting with Davina Stephens, who will demonstrate her work and techniques before we have lunch and then we set out on by private bus or taxi
reaching Candi Dasa late afternoon, where you have your chosen hotel by the sea for the next 6 nights.
For the next five gentle days by the sea, you'll focus on expanding your painting skills, knowledge of materials and techniques with Davina, to create your large work on canvas and paper which is the focus of your painting - and then voila!, you'll receive your painted, glazed and fired ceramics to take home, along with works on paper and canvas which will be rolled and ready for you to take home at the end of our exhibition night.
How does this retreat unfold?
You'll begin with three days dedicated to ceramics in lively Sanur, with all its seaside bars, shopping and dining possibilities, followed by a travel day to the retreat hub of Villa Nilaya - near to Candi Dasa in the South coast of Bali - then a luxurious 6 nights where all you need do is turn up each day at 9.15 am, after breakfast (and perhaps an early-morning dip?) - take a short walk to the villa for art and lunch - and more art (or take a taxi if you don't wish to walk).
Lets' begin our day with some calm and focusing breathwork and a gentle introduction to gathering together each morning.
This is led by Anna, who has been introducing participants over the last 3 years of retreats to the A.W.E. technique of 'microdosing mindfulness' ... it's fully integrated into the week, and is not connected with any belief system.
Your painting studio is an airy sea-facing space beneath the soaring grass roof of Villa Nilaya.
Most materials are provided, and you will be provided with a small list when you enrol.
Our program includes a night out in Candi Dasa for some fine dining and cocktails, and on the three peaceful evenings when there is no after-painting program, you can discover the seaside dining venues in our village of Mendira near Candi Dasa
You can choose where you stay from one of these accommodations - from cute Balinese bungalows (AMARTA ) to luxe-plus resort suites at the Candi Beach Hotel, Both venues have dining facilities if you fancy a night at home.
Your retreat cost INCLUDES accommodation with breakfast in the retreat price. for both SANUR and CANDI DASA (10 nights).
There is nothing else to pay, except for dinners on the 'free nights' (3 dinners are included).
AMARTA BUNGALOWS provide a helpful environment, 8 minutes' walk from the villa They're situated close to several good local restaurants (warungs), and have a good sea-side restaurant of their own, and a swimming pool. As value for money goes, this is a great choice, but if you're after something more luxurious, please consider CANDI BEACH RESORT HOTEl.
I warmly invite you to join our group in 2027 for this exceptional art experience By the Sea in Bali.
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The theme of 'The Vessel' is a doorway into storytelling. A vessel can hold memories, journeys, dreams, and personal narratives. Through print, paint, collage, and mark-making, we will explore how materials can guide us towards creating artwork that grows organically from experience. Rather than beginning with a fixed image in mind, we will allow the artwork to reveal itself through layers, textures, and discoveries.
Davina Stephens
MEET DAVINA STEPHENS
"My work always begins with an experience and an image that starts a narrative.
My paintings and collage works draw attention to small, overlooked moments and details from my journeys and surroundings. Through a contemplative process, I print onto paper and weave these printed images into visual tapestries of paint, texture, and memory. I am fascinated by how materials can guide the creative process. The printed textures become a landscape around me as I work, allowing new layers and narratives to emerge.
For over 15 years, I have worked with carved wooden blocks, Batik Tcap tools, Ijuk fibres, and rice paper. The physical process of pressing, printing, and layering materials creates a handmade quality that remains central to my practice.
Images of ancient fishing boats, maps, animals, flora, and landscapes appear throughout my work, creating a quiet atmosphere where stories unfold slowly through layers of texture and discovery.
Davina Stephens is a New Zealand-born, internationally exhibiting artist whose multidisciplinary practice spans painting, printmaking, collage, textile processes and installation.
Formed by her childhood in Bali and experiences across Indonesia, India, New Zealand, Australia and the United States, her work explores cultural memory, identity, mythology and the relationship between tradition and modernity. Her recent practice investigates the maritime cultures of the Indonesian archipelago and Pacific, incorporating Austronesian languages, cartography, traditional vessels and histories of migration and exchange.
Stephens studied Textile Design and Studio Design at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York and has exhibited for more than three decades across Indonesia, Australia, France, India, Thailand, Brazil, Singapore and New Zealand. Read more in detail.
Creative Living Retreats by Anna Kwiecinska
With a background as an art historian and art gallery owner, my collaboration with artists continues to be a fascinating career which evolved into specialist art retreats designed to combine seriously good art tuition with authentic cultural experiences.
The practice of meditation has under-pinned Creative Living Retreats, as a source of focus for creative inspiration.
In 202o Anna was part of a pilot study group led by two reseachers in the bay Area of San Francisco, into the practice of 'microdosing mindfulness' .Dr David Amster a pain management specialist and Jake Eagle, life coach and counsellor, - both meditators - have since published their findings as "The Power of A.W.E', and it is this wisdom that we draw on in recent retreats.
I began this retreat program in 2011 and other than during the pandemic, retreats have happened every year. Over a decade, many retreatants have returned for our thoughtfully curated weeks of supported creativity, and I genuinely look forward to welcoming you to experience the depth of wellbeing that Creative Living Retreats have become known for, More info
What You'll Do
On this retreat you will create and execute your own designs to decorate 4 pieces of tableware- a piece of 'green' ceramics for carving, and 3 bisque-fired pieces to paint using specific techniques you'll learn.
(more pieces are available at a small cost), and you will be designing and completing a large canvas and a large work on paper.
The theme of 'The Vessel' is both literal and metaphorical - inspired by the most recent body of Work by Davina Stephens whom Anna invited to collaborate with her for this retreat. To help you prepare for the retreat, you will receive notes and ideas from Anna, to guide you in gathering material to use for the painting ... think "exotic locations, memories, souvenirs, times gone by, family history ..."
You will be working on large sheets of quality paper and canvas - the same kind and quality that Davina uses in her professional work. You can roll your artworks and they'll be ready to frame at home.
Your STUDIO TIME consists of:
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3 full day sessions at the ceramics studio - a total of 20 hours
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9 x 3-hr sessions at Villa Nilaya for painting - a total of 27 hours
MASTERCLASS and DEMONSTRATIONS
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You will have guided tour around the ceramics production studio as a prelude to the studio time - it's an astounding operation,!
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Davina will demonstrate throughout the second part of the retreat and you'll see her work evolve side-by-side with your own
TECHNIQUES YOU WILL LEARN
Throughout the retreat, you will explore:
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Printing with unusual and found objects
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Traditional Batik Cap printing techniques
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Hand press printing
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Woodblock printing
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Creating tone-on-tone effects using white pigments
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Rice paper collage techniques
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Photocopy transfer printing with oil-based inks ( as a demonstration)
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Rubbing techniques using pastel and oil pastel
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Charcoal drawing and mark-making
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Building layered compositions
You will also have the opportunity to create a large woodblock print approximately 150 x 70 cm.
During this immersive art experience, you will be introduced to unique Balinese-inspired printmaking techniques and materials that will expand your creative practice.
You will explore:
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Batik Cap Printing on Rice Paper
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Working with traditional Batik Tcap tools, normally used for stamping wax patterns onto textiles, we will reconsider these objects as fine art printing tools.
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You will learn how to create subtle printed layers on rice paper, building textures and patterns that can become the foundation for collage, painting, or standalone works.
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We will experiment with acrylic paints, watercolours, inks, and other pigments to create washes and atmospheric surfaces.
Who Will This Retreat Suit?
If you love design, appreciate cultural diversity, are curious about new techniques and materials, then whether you are a ceramicist or painter already , or not, this retreat's will inspire you to approach these projects with confidence.
Davina's teaching begins with looking.
Rather than arriving with a fixed idea of what a finished artwork should be, she encourages youto slow down, become curious and really see what is around you.
The landscape, Balinese culture, everyday objects, natural materials, textures, patterns and small offerings become part of the creative vocabulary. Participants are encouraged to notice things they might ordinarily walk past — and then to translate those discoveries into their own visual language.
Her approach is playful and exploratory. Experimentation comes before perfection. Materials are allowed to behave unexpectedly. Layers can be added, altered, obscured and rediscovered. A mark can become an image; an accident can become an idea; a simple object can open a door into a much larger story.
For Davina, making art is not about learning to reproduce her style. It is about learning to trust your own way of seeing.
Through The Vessel, participants will explore print, paint, texture, layering and image-making while responding to the particular atmosphere of Bali. The emphasis is on curiosity, observation, experimentation and allowing the work to evolve.
You don't need to think of yourself as an artist to join us ... but you may be in danger of thinking of yourself as one when you leave!
You simply need to be willing to look, to play, and to see what happens.
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Loved the whole thing. Food was amazing and plenty of variety. Staff amazing ... I just thought you did the retreat so well. I felt totally satisfied with the way you made it all happen and made us all feel very special. You really were the glue. Very professional.
The exhibition was just so beautifully put together.
Lyn Mowday, Busselton, Australia, Bali Art Retreat
What does your Retreat include? Practically everything except your airfare !
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Tutoring with Ceramics Tutor - 20 hours over 3 days
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Tutoring with Davina Stephens - 27 hours over 5 days
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all art materials
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airport collection
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4 nights accommodation in Sanur-5-star SUITE ACCOMMODATION - with breakfast all days
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1 Balinese massage at your Sanur hotel spa.
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1 welcome dinner in Sanur
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3 lunches whilst at the ceramics studio
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1 lunch on Day 4 (travel day from Sanur to Candi Dasa)
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transport from Sanur to Candi Dasa
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6 nights at your choice of accommodation in Candi Dasa - with breakfast included
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4 lunches prepared at Villa Nilaya
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A stylish night out on the town in Candi Dasa with fine dining
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Exhibition night with Balinese megibung feast and entertainment
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MEALS TOTAL: 10 breakfasts; 8 lunches; 3 dinners
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Short morning practice with breathwork and meditation with Anna
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A 60-minute deliciously restorative Balinese massage at Villa Nilaya - or reflexology treat with our expert masseuses using Sensatia's pure sweet almond oil infused with restorative Balinese essential oils
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taxi rides in Candi Dasa should you prefer to walking
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Both locations offer you a wide variety of good restaurants within easy distance of your hotel for meals & coffee
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retreat bag with arty gifts
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organised and curated, hosted and fully supported by Anna with newsletters to get your creativity flowing pre-retreat
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What's not included?
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flights
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taxi transfer from retreat
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all personal expenses incurred at hotel (laundry etc)
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4 dinners
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any trips, tours or transports not included in the description of 'inclusions'
ACCOMMODATION and COST
All 10 nights of your retreat accommodation is included in the published retreat cost.
In SANUR (4 nights) everyone has a SUITE ROOM at the beautiful 5-star SAGARA VILLAS and SUITES RESORT, with breakfast. A massage is included in your reservation there. Find our more on this page.
IN CANDI DASA (6 nights) we offer you two hotels to choose from - both with beachfront locations and both about 8-10 minutes' walk from the retreat venue of Villa Nilaya, a spacious, fully-staffed private villa with large swimming pool, beachfront swimming access, painting studio, and lovely gardens. We are located in the quiet village of Mendira.
The accommodation iis shown here OR click on the images below to go to the hotel websites:
CANDI BEACH HOTEL and AMARTA BEACH COTTAGES
The retreat prices include SINGLE OCCUPANCY in ALL ACCOMMODATIONS and all of the items listed in 'Inclusions'.
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In SANUR: Sagara Villas and Suites
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