Date: March 25, 2022- April 1, 2022
Place: Stirling, Scotland
Cost: $1350.00 for the week.
Limited to just 11artists!
Please Read through all the information on this page.
At the bottom of the page, you will find the application button!
Applications are not based on skill, but rather are based on your desire to make art! Therefore, if your application is complete, spots will be given on a first-come, first-serve basis. When the retreat is full, names will be put onto a waitlist, and artists will be contacted if a spot opens up.
Included:
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7 nights at the Stirling Highland Hotel, in "Old Town" Stirling, just steps from Stirling Castle & steeped in history!
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Breakfast each morning
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High-Tea one day at the Hotel
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Painting class with Scottish-artist Fiona van Baardwijk, of Blaeberry River Arts
Presentation on breaking into the world of Public Art
A class on dried flower art
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Opportunities to meet local artists, and attend their classes
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Private Group "Old Town" Stirling Walking Tour with a local guide
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Private Group Guided tour of the Stirling Smith Art Gallery and Museum
Use of a hotel conference room for three days, to use as a make-shift studio space
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Free wifi, free parking, & all of the typical hotel amenities
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A balance of free time to explore Scotland, and optional opportunities for fun mini-art classes & art experiences (see the itinerary for more details!)
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Read all the details in the Itinerary below!
Add-ons
There will be mini-classes through the week that you can sign up for. You can find some below on the itinerary. As more are announced, you will be sent an email to read about the class being offered, and sign up if you wish. There is no obligation to participate, however they are sure to be fun! Some classes will be included in your fee, and other will be add-ons. In the case of an add-on, teaching artist will be determining their own cost for these mini-classes, and you will be paying them directly. Costs for add-on mini classes will range in price, but the idea is to keep cost minimal and make exploring a new art form affordable and fun!
The Stirling Highland Hotel has a spa! If you would like to have treatments done while staying in Scotland, you can reserve that on their website here.
Itinerary
Please note that everything is optional! This is YOUR retreat! Do as much or as little as you want!
Due to Covid, dates of some events may shift.
Day 1 (March 25):
Arrive at Stirling Highland Hotel at 3:00PM, where Amanda will be waiting for you in the Lobby to show you to your room.
You will have the rest of the day to relax, unpack, wander the town, sleep, etc. After long flights (some of them over night!), everyone can just relax this evening!
There will be an optional meet & greet in the lounge on the first night.
The Stirling Highland Hotel!
Stirling is a city filled with history.
Day 2 (March 26):
9:00: greeting in the meeting room (Amanda will tell you where this is on day 1) after breakfast. We can introduce ourselves, and will go over all of the optional classes and group activities for the week!11:00 AM Old Town Walking Tour of Stirling. (Included, no extra fee, approximately one hour long). This private group tour will help you get familiar with the town, and is bound to be a lot of fun! Our local walking tour guide will take us on a journey through the Old Town, sites of the Royal Burgh, and reveal some of Stirling's strangest stories. This tour is a great mix of history & storytelling.
The rest of the day is free time! You can head off to make art, can explore the town through the day, use the meeting room to spread out with your art form, wander the castle, etc.
5:00-6:00, Free presentation in the meeting room about breaking into the world of public art installations & commissions. Presenter: Amanda Edwards. Topics that will be covered are how to find public calls for art, creating a presentation, how to price your large-scale work, how to create a budget, and working with public institutions & their special rules and regulations.
Day 3 (March 27):
9:00-12:00 AM (Add -on art class) Mosaic Jewelry Class with the incredible Kirsten Kramer! Learn the art of mini-mosaic masterpieces, and create a wearable reminder of your time in Scotland!
Read more about Kirsten & her beautiful work here.
2:30 PM (Included, no extra fee!) High Tea at the hotel!
The afternoon is free time! Stay and make art, use the meeting room to spread out with your art form, head to a park, check out some galleries, make art at the castle, etc. The day is yours!
7:00 PM- (Included, no extra fee!) Paint & Sip, Painting class with artist Fiona McKenzie van Barrdwijk, where we will be painting Scottish Coo! See more about Fiona, her work, and more classes here
Create a wearable art piece at Kirsten Kramer's Workshop!
Paint & Sip, Painting class with artist Fiona McKenzie van Barrdwijk, is included, but like everything else, is not mandatory. There will be a 10% discount on food & drinks that you would like to purchase during the class! The time may change, and the location will be determined soon. It will be in Stirling though!
Day 4 (March 28):
9:30-11:30 AM (included, no extra fee!) Flower Art: Using Flowers as a Medium, with Amanda Edwards. This class will teach you how to dry flowers in a way that maintains color so they can be used in art, what adhesives to use, and you will make a canvased flower art piece of your own. Location: the hotel meeting room.11:30-4:00 PM free time!
4:00- 6:00 PM (Add-on art class) Natural Stone & Findings Mosaic Course, with Frances Green. In this class, you will learn how to collect natural materials & use them to create one of a kind mosaic pieces. Click here to learn more about this fun class! Location: the hotel meeting room. Cost: $30.
Day 5 (March 29):
Today is a 100% free day! Make art, or this is a great day to make plans to leave Stirling & head to Edinburgh on the train, go to the Glasgow Botanical Gardens, hop on a tour bus to the Highlands, hike up one of the incredible mountains, explore to your heart's content!
Day 6 (March 30):
10:00-11:00... a cool opportunity is in the works... stay tuned!
11:00 -12:00, a guided tour of the Stirling Smith Art Gallery and Museum (no extra fee).
12:00 through the rest of the day: free time! Create art, head off on the train, find some cool ancient sites, the day is yours, so make the most of it!
Day 7 (March 31):
Free Day! Go to one of the local museums to get inspired, sketch in a park, paint in the city, do a day-tour, spend the day in a local pub and write a novel! :)
6:00 PM Optional goodbye dinner (Time and place TBD).
Day 8 (April 1): Check out of the hotel with lots of art and memories!
The Stirling Hotel
Important Details- Please Read!
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There are private and shared rooms at the hotel. If you don't see an option to choose "Private or Shared" on the application, that is because the option is gone. Look at the top of the application to see the room choice that is left.
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Transportation to and from Stirling is your responsibility. Whether you are flying into Glasgow or Edinburgh, getting to Stirling is not difficult. There are direct bus lines, trains, as well as taxi and car hires from both airports. Read about getting to Stirling from both airports here.
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Renting a car is not necessary, however if you do, parking at the hotel in Stirling is free.
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All mediums may apply except for musicians, including but not limited to photographers, writers, painters, jewelry artists, mosaic artists, fabric arts, etc. - however please keep in mind that there is NO traditional studio, and you MUST be prepared to create your own creative space (indoors or out) and avoid any art production that could cause even the smallest damage to the hotel. This means bring drop cloths if you plan to paint!- and NO glitter! There will be day-time use of a meeting space at the hotel on days 2, 3, and 4, where you will be welcome to work as well.
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IMPORTANT! If you reserve a room and would like to cancel, there will only be a refund if the room is reserved by someone else. If travel is messed up due to the pandemic, you will get a full refund for your room & classes. Please consider getting travel insurance for your flights.
This is a creative retreat open to all art forms/mediums! For some people, that will mean they want quiet, peace, and reflection. Others will want to be social with the other artists. Both are fine! It's just important to remember to respect what each person wants out of their retreat. There are ZERO expectations for people to hang out, be social or not social, or even to leave their rooms! This is YOUR amazing Scottish Art Retreat! The only thing expected is for you to have a week to be your creative, wonderful self!
It is understood that this retreat is a way for artistic people to spend a week in a highly inspiration location at a minimal cost! By reserving a space, you understand that although many of the participants may indeed end up touring the area together, you are under NO obligation to participate in any activities.
Rules
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If you use the meeting room during the day for your art (on Day 2, 3, and 4), be prepared to leave the room as you found it in the morning.
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You may meet some great people in Scotland, however, you may not bring anyone who was not invited to the residency to any of the art retreat activities or classes.
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Breakfast every morning, and high tea one day, is included in your stay, but you are responsible for your other meals.
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If you are staying in a shared room, you must bring a book light, ipad, etc and headphones, because 10 PM will be lights out in the shared rooms if your roommate is sleeping.
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If you are using paints or other potentially messy art forms, you must bring drop cloths with you if you will be creating art in your room. You are responsible for any damage that your art medium causes.
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Absolutely NO glitter!