Artist Residencies
Santa Rosa Arts is located in 35 acres of forested land with a creek that runs through the property, home to various microclimates, a spring and a vast diversity of wildlife and botanicals. Expansive sunsets and dark skies are perfect for star or moon gazing while hearing wildlife at a distance. A wading pool in the property invites residents to float while stargazing. Conceptual visual artists, musicians, performance artists and writers ready to explore in non conforming to western art practices are invited to apply.
Note that our location is a natural resource area with plenty of wildlife and risks and blessings inherent to the natural world. High hills and uneven terrain are part of the experience. Because of the natural terrain, accessibility could be an issue for some folks.
Group residencies include the opportunity to exhibit at and Arts on 3 for a one week pop up exhibition including a community exhibition night. Please submit a potential piece that can be easily transported /installed during the residency.
Group Residencies include:
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Expert talks, lectures, workshops
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Field trips including transportation, field lunches, and supplies
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Wifi
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Access to pool, barrel sauna and cold tub
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Access to shared studio space during studio hours
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Shared room accommodations
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Meal plan in a family style communal setting
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34 acres of forest to make it your air studio
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Curator Portfolio Reviews
Blooming Earth
2026 DATES:
ONLINE April 25th - May 23rd, 2026
(1.5 hour weekly meetings to be set by group)
IN PERSON May 28th to June 4th, 2026
Artists are to attend both portions of the residency.
Only 4-6 artists will be selected for this residency.
This call for submissions is for artists that:
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Are seekers of deep connection to plants
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Explore their botanical art practice from non western perspectives
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Are open to non traditional ways of creating and discussing art
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Artists with anti colonial, anti exploitative practices
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Creatives ready to surrender to the magic of the world
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Self aware artists seeking a community of like minded artists
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Artists that are seeking healing and transformation of their art practices through plants and earth
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Artists ready to work on radical acceptance of self and others
Aqua Viva | Water
Water as Creative Force
An International Art & Healing Residency
Santa Rosa Arts, British Columbia, Canada
Agua Viva is an intimate, immersive residency for artists and creatives called to deepen their relationship with water—as muse, collaborator, healer, and teacher. Rooted in fluidity, reverence, and play, this program invites a profound reconnection to water as a source of creativity, healing, and transformation.
Set on 35 acres of forested land at Santa Rosa Arts in British Columbia, overlooking Christina Lake and the converging waterways of the Kettle River, this residency offers a rare environment for reflection, renewal, and artistic evolution. With a creek running through the land, natural springs, diverse microclimates, and expansive night skies, the site itself becomes part of the creative process—an open-air studio shaped by water, wildlife, and stillness.
This residency is designed for artists who feel depleted by conventional art systems and are seeking nourishment, clarity, and spiritual awakening. Guided by a dedicated curator and supported by a curandera, grief coach, and mentor artist, participants are held in a deeply caring and transformative space. Artists consistently leave with renewed creative direction, emotional healing, and a deeper sense of purpose in their practice.
Who It’s For
Poets, writers, visual artists, sound artists, performance artists, and water stewards are invited to apply. We welcome creatives ready to explore water in both physical and spiritual forms, especially those open to non-Western, relational, and decolonial approaches to art and knowledge.
An openness of mind and spirit is essential to fully immerse in this experience.
Program Overview
2026 DATES:
Online Program May 30 – July 1
(weekly 1.5-hour sessions)
In-Person Residency July 10 – 17, 2026
Participants are expected to attend both portions
Only 4–6 artists will be selected, ensuring an intimate and deeply supported experience.
What to Expect
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Daily immersion in lakes, rivers, creeks, and waterfalls
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Water-based rituals, creative practices, and embodied exploration
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Time with knowledge keepers, community members, and water stewards
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Teachings rooted in non-Western and decolonial perspectives
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Lectures on water symbolism, ancient relationships to water, and performance /writing by the water
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Curatorial guidance, group dialogue, and project development
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Space for rest, grief work, reflection, and renewal
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Floating, listening, and learning directly from water as a creative collaborator
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This year’s focus explores water as a creative collaborator, with emphasis on writing and performance as embodied practices.
What Is Included
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All lectures, workshops, and mentorship (online + in person)
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Field trips, transportation, and field lunches
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Shared accommodations (private room requests considered)
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Basic communal meal plan
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Access to studio space (bring compact supplies)
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All field materials and supplies
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Wifi, sauna, pool access
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35 acres of forest, gardens, and natural environments as your studio
Accessibility & Reciprocity
Agua Viva operates on a cost-recovery reciprocity model, covering accommodation, meals, transportation, supplies, and guest facilitators.
We are committed to reducing financial barriers. If you feel deeply called to this work but face financial limitations—especially artists from underserved communities—we invite you to reach out. We will do our best to support your participation.
The Invitation
We are seeking artists who resonate deeply with the values of this land and this de-colonial work. Before applying, we encourage you to connect with us. We base our programming on the principles of building communities of care and reciprocity based in the mesoamerican cosmovision.
Request a coffee online chat:
graham.rocio@gmail.com
info@santarosaarts.com
Apply Now
If you feel called to explore water as a living collaborator, to reconnect with your creative spirit, and to be held in a space of care, depth, and transformation—this residency is for you.
Applications are now open. Only 4–6 artists will be selected.
Submit your application here:
https://form.jotform.com/240865671719265
Deadline: May 5th, 2026
Please note: Santa Rosa Arts is located in a wild and dynamic natural environment. Uneven terrain, wildlife encounters, and the inherent risks and beauty of working closely with the land and water are part of the experience.
Santa Muerte | Death
2026 DATES:
ONLINE August 15th-September 15th
(1.5 hour weekly meetings to be set by group)
IN PERSON September 25 - October 2nd 2026
Artists are expected to attend both portions of the residency.
Only 6-8 artists will be selected for this residency.
We are seeking artists interested in exploring the transformative powers of death. Creatives that work and live seeking, that are comfortable in the liminal spaces, and push boundaries when it comes to death and art, are welcome to apply.
This intimate residency is highly focused on challenging the western approaches that acknowledge death as finite. This residency is highly focused on reciprocity, ritual, spiritual practices and the acknowledgement that grief can arise when working death. This residency will touch on the strategies for self care and care for communities when our art practices become community oriented.
This residency is highly suited for artists considering death in all broad forms and are highly comfortable with exploring death in natural spaces including working with bones and decay.
Visits to ghost towns cemeteries, exploration of taxidermy, working with bones, rituals, spirit calling, grief honouring and contemporary art practices related to death are part of this residency.
Self - Directed
Need a place for reflection, nourishment and dedicated creative time? Come for a self directed residency. This is ideal for artists doing research, writing, land artists and creatives interested in place.
We have 3 available bunkie style beautiful sleeping quarters perfect for self directed residencies:
Studio Azul ( overlooking lake)
Bunkie Pine Cove ( overlooking lake)
RV Vanta Rosa (overlooking mountains by creek)
Come for 1 or 2 weeks.
Cost:
$500 week in a basic forest studio /bunkie style
$450 for the RV VantaRosa
Ask for full info package.
Dates available in 2026:
August 7-14
August 21-22
November 1-27
Dates available 2027:
April 9-16
April 16-23
April 30- May 7
May 7-14
June
September