Iceland
May 17-24, 2026
Limited to just 8 artists.
Cost: $2800 per person
This retreat is now full. To be added to the waitlist, please complete the below application.
These retreats are not based on your portfolio... they exist to invite artists of all mediums to experience time and space away from their daily routines, environments, and obligations. They allow creative time to reflect, make art, relax, and explore a new area with new inspirations. Immersion into an area other than your home can be healing and inspiring. Something magical happens when artists explore their creativity within a new community!
This retreat will be split between two locations:
You'll be staying at the Exeter hotel in Reykjavik for 5 nights, AND at the Hvammsvík Estate & Hot Springs in Hvalfjörður for two nights.
The Exeter Hotel is in a perfect location for our stay in Reykjavik! It is just an anchor drop away from Reykjavík’s Old Harbor, and within walking distance of both the waterfront and the city centre. It's known to be modern/industrial hip, with a Restaurant and Bar frequented by locals. You'll be having breakfast each day at the hotel, which also includes their own home-baked doughnuts, bagels, and Icelandic pastries. Built in one of the Harbors old warehouses, the Exeter is a cool part of Reykjavik's history, in the center of everything, and the #3 top hotel in the city according to Tripadvisor.com!
While in Reykjavik we will be using the hotel's temperature-controlled greenhouse as our art studio, where we will meet up for mini-classes, and where you'll be able to hunker down and work on your own art during the day if you would like to. When doing a hotel retreat, we are all part of a texting chain, so that no one is left out of spontaneous meetups, shopping outings, coffee in the lounge, sketching in the "studio", or nightcaps in the bar. Hotels offer a nice balance of personal space and group activities on these retreats!
Our studio for the week will be the Exeter's temperature controlled greenhouse! We will have use of it from 10-4 daily. Here is where we will meet for mini classes, and where you can work on your art during the day.
Rooms at the Exeter, like everywhere in the city, are compact and simple, which is the Scandinavian norm... a big difference for American travelers, but you'll quickly adjust and love the simplicity! Hotel Amenities: Bakery, lounge, courtyard, sauna, gym, charged laundry and dry-cleaning services, plug adaptors, and free WiFi. In rooms: Bluetooth speakers, TV, Nespresso coffee machine with Sjöstrand coffee capsules, tea-making kit, mini-fridge, ironing board, bathrobe and slippers, and Sóley Organics bath products.
This retreat will include two mini classes (details on them to come, but you. can expect some fun Icelandic craft), a walking tour of the city, and a night of Icelandic Music & storytelling! This retreat is about having time to explore and be inspired by Iceland. It's a perfect sketching holiday or plein air retreat! The temperature averages in the 50's late May, and there will be 20 hours of sunlight. The itinerary for mini classes and the special event may change, as it's hard to schedule them a year in advance, but they will be wonderful experiences!
There are SO many things to do in the city, there won't be enough time to do them all... whale-watching and puffin-spotting cruises, seeing the city’s cathedral, the rainbow-painted Skólavörðustígur Street, traveling by boat to Yoko Ono's Peace Tower, the Punk Museum (a favorite of mine), the art museum, art studio visits, etc.
While you are in Reykjavik, there is no need to rent a car... but I would suggest you rent one either by yourself or with others from the retreat for a few days near the end of Reykjavik and for the days we go to the Hvammsvík Estate. We will be within day-trip distance of some natural beauties you DO NOT want to miss: Skógafoss Waterfall, Langjökull Glacier, the Great Geysir in Haukadalur Valley, black-sand beach at Reynisfjara, and so much more.
*** If you decide not to rent a car, a ride to the Hvammsvík Estate & back to Reykjavik will be available to you! The cost will be $65 payable to the person who drives you to the 2nd location. That cost includes the ride back to Reykjavik.
Final Two Nights spent at the Hvammsvík Estate & Hot Springs in Hvalfjörður.
The Hvammsvík Estate is a family owned estate consisting of 1200 acres of land. It is situated in the middle of Hvalfjörður “Whale Fjord” – a historic and remote fjord in the Soutwest of Iceland. It is a 45 minute drive from the city.
Two nights on the Hvammsvík Estate, where we each have our own INCREDIBLE "Artist Lodge" (each one is dedicated to a beloved Icelandic Artist), complete with views of the fjord and lake. Each lodge has a bedroom, kitchenette, and bathroom.
To the Right: view of the Fjord and Lake from an Artist Lodge!
The estate is a historical landmark that was first discovered by thevikings 1000 years ago as recorded in Landnáma, the Icelandic book of settlers, dating back to the 11th century. In Hvammsvik, we will have privacy in the dramatic Icelandic countryside... a place to feel the quietness, walking tothe black sand beaches, ocean, meadows, and mountains all around the estate! As guests in on the estate, we get exclusive access to a private hot spring that is located on our Northern shore! In addition to that, you can sign up for access to EIGHT hot springs!
This part of our retreat is about reflection, creating and being inspired by nature and the quiet beauty of Iceland.
When you book your retreat, you will receive some options for additional add-ons for your week in Iceland. An example is adding on a pass for all EIGHT hot springs around the Hvammsvík Estate (if one is not enough)! Letting artists have more freedom to pick and choose excursions is one way that I have tried to keep the retreat cost down in what is an incredibly expensive place to travel.
***** On this retreat, you can bring a friend or partner, since you are staying in a hotel room. However, there will be an additional charge of $400. This covers the additional charges for a second person in a room at the hotel and in your private lodge. Your friend or partner will not have use of the greenhouse during our stay in Reykjavik, as this space is only for art retreat attendees. However, they will be welcome to join in on the group walking tour, evening of story telling, and any other group outings they want to go on! Only artists will be able to get a ride to and from our second location, so should you travel with a friend or partner, you will have to rent a vehicle. All hotel rooms have just one Queen sized bed. You MUST let me know when you apply if you are bringing an extra person.
Things to note:
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Meals (other than breakfast) and transportation to and from the retreat are your responsibility, and are not included in the retreat cost.
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The week is all yours to do what you wish. These retreats are meant to give YOU time to reconnect with your creative self, and have the freedom to explore your own medium in a new environment. Do as many or as few of the scheduled events as you wish!
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Half of the cost of your retreat will be due when your spot is confirmed. The second half of your retreat cost will be due January 2026.
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I recommend renting a car in Iceland, at least for a couple of days. There are so many amazing places to see! If you choose not to rent a car for at least the last few days of the retreat, you will be matched up with someone who is renting a car, for transportation to and from the the Hvammsvík Estate. The cost of that transportation will be $65 per person, payable to the driver of the car.
