Estudio Corazón, Artist in Residence Program at Ghost Ranch, 2023
History
After leaving Santa Fe, New Mexico and driving about an hour, you enter the landscape of vast vistas, table-topped mesas, tall cliffs, the Rio Chama bordered by huge old cottonwood trees, mountains in the distance and more beauty around every bend in the winding road.
“It is not a country of light on things,” said Georgia O’Keeffe. “It is a country of things in light.” With a history as colorful as the surrounding red and yellow cliffs of the Piedra Lumbre (shining stone), Ghost Ranch offers a diversity of programs and adventure.
Open year-round, the ranch is committed to spiritual development, peace and justice, honoring the environment and exploring family through the celebration of art, culture and nature. The landscape of Ghost Ranch encompasses 21,000 acres of towering rock walls, vivid colors and vast skies.
People from all over the world come to work together in creation care, to paint, write, to hike, ride horseback, to research globally renowned archaeological and fossil quarries or simply to rest and renew their spirits.
2023
Come and follow your passion
in a safe, wide-open space.
Estudio Corazón at Ghost Ranch
A residency program
for fine artists and writers
For decades Ghost Ranch has provided sacred space and inspiration for artists of all types in many different mediums.
Estudio Corazón, an artist residency program developed in 2020, is designed to give fine artists an opportunity to immerse themselves in this majestic landscape away from the pressures of a daily routine. We offer you a serene setting in a secluded part of Ghost Ranch pursue your creative work with no expectations.
Housed in a community of eight rustic, individual casitas, the residency is a 4-week program (May is 2 weeks) for fine artists. Each casita has a living area and a studio: they are side by side in the same building and separated to create distinct yet unified spaces.
The shared bathhouse is a short walk from your casita.
Weather permitting, the compound also features a fire pit and a star gazing hammock habitat.
Please note there is no WiFi at the casitas, yet there are spots in other locations on the ranch for communication. We cannot accommodate private areas for communications.
*For static images, please select on individual black circles on left side of this screen/slide.
Overview
Estudio CorazÓn
An application must be completed and approved before registering for the Artist in Residence program.
Residency Rates are:
4 week - $3,800
$250 of which is non-refundable.
50% of cost is due 60 days prior, and the remainder is due 30 days prior.
Your residency includes your casita/studio with three meals per day. There will be an offering of one field trip per week to a more remote or private area of the ranch for painting and reflection. Transportation is provided by Ghost Ranch to these locations. Residents will have the opportunity to take up to two wellness/yoga offerings per week.
2023 Dates
May 13 - 26 ( FULL)
June 1-28
August 3-30
September 4-October 1
October 4-31
Artist Studio Community Overview
Casitas have been designed with an artist's needs in mind.
Each participant will have their own casita with a bedroom/sitting room on one side and a dedicated studio/work space next door.
Additional information about Accomodations :
Ghost Ranch is unique in many ways. One is that its historic Casitas are rustically traditional, inside and out. Another is that our fragile New Mexican landscape is purposely maintained with conservation as a priority. We ask everyone to stick to paths and roads and not stray into anywhere marked private.
The Casitas, dedicated to the "Artist in Residence/Estudio Crazon '' program, do not have individual bathrooms. Program participants share a common bathhouse, which is approximately two hundred feet from each Casita. Additionally, the Dining Hall is an approximate five or ten minute walk from the Casitas. You should note that the ground is uneven in many places, both on the way to the bathhouse and to the Dining Hall. Rainy weather conditions can increase the precariousness of the terrain. It is vitally important that each participant is comfortable with and prepared for these conditions during their stay at the ranch (we encourage hiking boots, flashlights, walking sticks, and rain gear).
We hope this information will assist you in your decision to be a part of our "Artist in Residence" program. If you have any further questions please contact: Diane Arenberg at artistinresidence@ghostranch.org
Thank you.
*For static images, please select on individual black circles on right side of this screen/slide.
Dining Hall & Meals
All meals will be served in the Dining Hall during set times. There will be a modest amount of food in the community room at the residency to fill in if you should miss a meal. A boxed lunch may also be arranged in advance with the kitchen should you desire to paint out on location during a meal.
Vegetarian and vegan entrees are often available upon request. Gluten free can also be accommodated with pre-notice. If you have more expanded food sensitivities or needs, you will need to bring some or all of your own food to supplement our menu.
Note: Each casita lodging room has a small refrigerator.
2023
Sign up information
An application must be completed and approved before registering for the Artist in Residence program.
Please click here to access the application form.
To register:
After receiving sign off from Diane Arenberg, you will be sent a registration link. The link will bring you to an online form where you will fill out your contact information and pay a $250 deposit.
Session 2
Thursday, June 1 – Tuesday, June 28
Rate: $3,800
Session 3
Thursday, August 3 – Wednesday, August 30
Rate: $3,800
Session 4
Monday, September 4 – Sunday, October 1
Rate: $3,800
Session 5
Wednesday, October 4 - Tuesday, October 31
Rate: $3800
Your residency includes your casita/studio with three meals per day. There will be an offering of one field trip per week to a more remote or private area of the ranch for painting and reflection. Transportation is provided by Ghost Ranch to these locations. Two wellness/yoga offerings will be provided for residents each week.
Deposit/Secure Your Spot - $250 (non-refundable)
50% due 60 days prior to Residency start date*
50% due 21 days prior to Residency start date*
*non-refundable unless we are able to fill the slot
Host Artist Information
Message from Estudio Corozon co-founder Diane Arenberg:
"We are thrilled to be a part of this addition to Ghost Ranch programming! We welcome you and look forward to supporting you on your creative journey."
Sincerely,
Diane Arenberg
Diane Arenberg is a fine artist living in Santa Fe, NM who enjoys working in many mediums: pastel, oil, printmaking, encaustic and metalsmithing. Her passion for Ghost Ranch has evolved from class participant to Governing Board Member and instructor over a span of 32 years. She is very excited to share her residency experience in the United States and Morocco and for the opportunity to bring Estudio Corazón into fruition!
Email: ArtistInResidence@ghostranch.org
Back to Rates
Testimonials
Ryan Wurmser
Natasha Isenhour
Colette Odya Smith
Matthew Jaffe
David Schulze
Barbara Coleman
Diane Arenberg
Donna Nelson Barnhill
Lynda Young Kaffie
Testimonials
In 2020, six artists were invited to participate in Ghost Ranch’s inaugural Estudio Corazón Artist in Residence Program. We expanded the residency in 2021 to offer one two-week session and four four week sessions! The following testimonials are from both the pilot group and a selection of the 2021 artists.
(left to right)
Linda Young Kaffie
Barbara Coleman
Natasha Isenhour
Ryan Wurmser
Diane Arenberg
Donna Nelson Barnhill
RYAN WURMSER
Artist and Writer - Westlake Village, California
During the month of October of last year, I participated in the second annual artist residency program at Ghost Ranch in Abiquiu, New Mexico. It was beautiful to reunite with the original pilot group from the inaugural residency in 2020, and to be with good friends for a whole month of creativity and magic.
I made the long trek from LA to Abiquiu, with an overnight in Scottsdale, AZ. I arrived not feeling so hot at the tail end of a seasonal cold, with the altitude only doubling the effects. Then, I lost my car keys and could not unload my stuff until the following morning. That night, I went to bed with a raging headache. I needed a couple days to settle in. When I woke up the following morning, I opened my casita door to a Technicolor world of hypnotic prismatic light. Like complementary colors on the wheel, Ghost Ranch is a land of visceral contrasts—heat-cold, wind-stillness, dampness-dryness.
I set out to paint the sundrenched mesas of red and gold, following the sun on its westward path, where the skies melted into Turneresque watercolors. It was maddening, such fleeting beauty. As I clumsily manipulated my watercolors, hoping to capture the transcendent beauty of the sunset, disappearing almost as fast as my confidence, I thought to myself, “What’s the point.” Back at the studio, as I looked at my studies that day, the transcendent nature of these ephemeral experiences would wash over me. I did this again and again, in oil, pastel, and watercolor, and there was always that humbling epiphany.
To maintain the freshness of the experience, last year I did pochades from start to finish outdoors and did not mess with them back in the studio. This year, I decided to see if I could develop them further while back in the casita studio. It was a rewarding process and I learned a lot. Ghost Ranch is the perfect place to center myself and expaaaaaaaaaand.
NATASHA ISENHOUR
Oil and Pastel Painter - Socorro, New Mexico
After working as a professional artist for over 20 years, I had the privilege of being invited to the inaugural Artist Residency, Estudio Corazón at Ghost Ranch.
The gift of time, space and endless inspiration led me beyond the realm of production, into my authentic voice as a painter. As a result of my uninterrupted time there, I was able to tap into a level of creativity I couldn’t reach while immersed in my day-to-day commitments as a full-time artist.
The experience has genuinely changed my life and has fueled me with a new understanding of the authenticity I am trying to convey in each and every painting.
Estudio Corazón has been the biggest influence on my artwork to date and I believe the experience will continue to “show up” in my work for a long time to come.
colette odya smith
Pastel Painter/Mixed Media - Wauwatosa, Wisconsin
My Estudio Corazon residency stands alone as a unique and powerful experience. It was my first time at Ghost Ranch and my first residency. Having an entire month in the perfect balance of isolation and supportive community proved to be healing, inspiring, and challenging all at the same time. Though I had traveled in the Southwest and visited New Mexico before, the intimate immersion into this fabled landscape brought out all kinds of responses from me that have resulted in the exploration of different media and processes in my work. It has expanded my color palette and my appreciation for the miracle of ever-changing light and atmosphere.
One of the aspects of the residency program I appreciated the most was the release from the self-imposed idea of producing and accounting for how I spent my time and energy. What a gift to have the safety, the time, and the means to follow whatever presented itself as the path for that moment, that hour, that day, or however long one wished. I also found the physicality of living simple at Ghost Ranch to be grounding and humbling.
It was not actually one experience, but an open-ended invitation to let it be what it would be and to allow the passage of 30 days to take me to many places, both exterior and interior. Ghost Ranch and the people I shared it with are now part of me and my story.
matthew jaffe
Artist - San Francisco, California
My time spent at Ghost Ranch with Estudio Corazon last October was one of the most memorable experiences I've ever had. The landscape was beyond beautiful; almost otherworldly. Each time I stepped outside from my casita and gazed at Kitchen Mesa, it was like I was seeing it for the very first time. Spending my days drawing and painting in such awesome surroundings was a true luxury.
The landscape inspired me beyond words; its power also humbled me, but it was all a welcome part of the experience. Most notable about the residency was the friendships that I formed with the other participants; being able to share artwork, ideas, and fun times made it so memorable. I can't thank Ghost Ranch enough for giving me this opportunity to spend time with Estudio Corazon. It's one that will continue to inspire me for many, many years to come.
david schulze
Artist - Dallas, Texas
Being away from life’s familiar routines, being part of a small community of creative individuals, having time to be in nature, all while exploring my own creativity, motivated me to accept the invitation to be an Estudio Corazon artist. At the time, these reasons seemed sufficient to carry me through four weeks spent making art in simple accommodations in one of the most beautiful places I had ever known. During the residency, I discovered there was so much more to experience and so many other ways to grow.
As the residency began, the feeling of constant movement associated with my busy city life began falling away. I came to better understand and appreciate the value of the community that had developed among the resident artists. As I painted, hiked, meditated, and just sat still I had startling insights about the lenses through which I viewed my art and my life. Replacing a feeling of urgency to make paintings with permission to create noting unless I was moved to do so resulted in my being much more creative and productive.
Impactful experiences most often come when they are not expected. That is certainly true of my time as an Estudio Corazon artist. Sweeping the desert (yes, with a broom), watching the moon rise to take its place among the vivid stars, and seeing the land and plants change over the course of four weeks were all unexpected joys during my time at Ghost Ranch. My life has never been the same. And yes, I think my art improved, too.
BARBARA COLEMAN
Oil Painter - Albuquerque, New Mexico
I was deeply enriched by my artist-in-residency at Ghost Ranch. During my residency, I was ably to complete an average of two paintings a day.
As a professional artist, I paint at least forty hours a week in a combination of studio and plein air work (painting outdoors from life). The stark contrast between my home-studio and Nature being my studio allowed me to explore in ways I didn’t know that I needed, both literally and metaphorically.
One of the greatest gifts of being at Ghost Ranch was physical safety. As a woman, it has never been safe for me to do Plein Air alone. As a consequence, I have always been tethered to having a painting buddy/group and other people’s schedules. Being able to strap on my backpack full of paints, hike to a location I wanted, paint there safely all day without a shred of hyper-vigilance, and not be interrupted or rushed by other people’s schedules was a form of freedom I’ve never experienced before. I allowed the struggle of painting in a new place to transform my process, without the excuse of not having enough time to finish a painting because of others’ schedules cutting my exploration short.
I came back to my studio with an abundance of ideas for studio paintings, a whole new process of starting paintings, and a changed palette to meet my evolving expression as an artist. In short, my time at Ghost Ranch significantly revised and upgraded my process of painting plein air and an experience I will remember with gratitude the rest of my life.
Diane Arenberg
Painter and Printmaker - Santa Fe, New Mexico
Co-Founder of Estudio Corazón
I first came to Ghost Ranch in 1988 for a painting workshop. To say this changed the trajectory of my life might seem overly dramatic, yet this is exactly what happened. The ancient landscape mixed with the ephemeral light must already have been imprinted on my soul because I just had to keep coming back.
Thirty-three years later, as Co-Founder and participant in the Estudio Corazón Inaugural Residency, I can say the month I spent there has had an equivalent impact on my life. The opportunity to immerse myself in the beauty and tranquility of Ghost Ranch catapulted me right back to my initial thrill as a participant. My love for plein air painting was rekindled and I experienced a creative flow I’ve never had in my career as a fine artist.
The best part of the residency, however, was to experience the joy, camaraderie, and creations of my fellow residents. If we ever got too full of ourselves, all we had to do was sit out under the Milky Way to be reminded we are part of a much larger “community”.
Ghost Ranch is a place to be grounded and soar simultaneously! Estudio Corazón gave me wings.
Donna nelson barnhill
Oil Painter - Santa Fe, New Mexico
The 30 day Ghost Ranch Artist In Residency Program was a moment in time for me to quiet my mind and be retrospective by choice. It was like a dance in nature where I could be alone with the universe, a place where the Milky Way and Pleiades would tease the constellation outside my door.
To be part of a world where a spiritual reaction to the energy that has wondered and wandered the Canyon long before me was truly magical. The residency was a time to explore, to live, create and exist.
I relish that I was able to put my current life aside for just awhile and experience the mystery of Ghost Ranch to further my artistic journey.
LYNDA YOUNG KAFFIE
Oil Painter - Austin, Texas
For me as an artist, to have 4 weeks of time and space to open to new possibilities in my creative process and artmaking in an incredibly beautiful and inspiring landscape in the company of other artists equally dedicated to their work was valuable beyond measure.
Having the door to my studio only steps away from the door to my living quarters offered me the opportunity to work at whatever hour of day or night that creativity called. I found myself inspired to try new experiments in imagery, composition, and color palette.
Sharing ideas and experiences with other artists over meals and on field trips added an expansive dimension to the richness of the gift of my residency at Estudio Corazón.