Artist testimonials
Ana Balcazar/ visual and mural artist
Lima, Peru - 2021
I needed silence but the sounds of nature, every night was a wonderful experience to hear all beings full of life, and the bonfires, the power of the fire in the dark. The amazon rainforest has a special energy, in Sachaqa I felt safe in solitude. I am very grateful for this opportunity.
www.anabalcazarbartra.com IG: @anabalcazarbartra
ale wendorff/ painter
Lima, Peru - 2021
I had a great experience at Sachaqa, the space is excellent, the location, the fact that it's not easily accessible but you have to go up the hill and being so immersed in nature, I loved it. The studio is good and the accommodation in general too. I also run cultural spaces in Lima and know how exhausting it can be, I really appreciate that you manage Sachaqa and that I have been able to spend a season there working quietly, honestly, it seemed like a good time there and I would like to return. IG @ale_wendorff
Catherine Phillips - writer
Canada - March 2019
My recent experience at Sachaqa Centro De Arte was incredibly rewarding. As a writer, I was given the space and time to work without distraction in my own little home in the jungle.
The residence was a peaceful and supportive place for me to dive into my work over the course of a month. I was inspired by other artists at the residency, walks to the River Cumbaza, and visits to the Quechua Lamista community, Chunchiwi.
Surrounded by nature, I was given the opportunity to challenge myself and my writing in ways that would not otherwise have been possible – an experience I believe any artist would benefit from.
Alex Rudd - Visionary artist
USA - October 2019
My time at Sachaqa was nothing less than special. It’s tucked away in the Jungle mountains in a small village, named San Roque de Cumbaza. The village is about forty minutes outside of Tarapoto, just far enough to feel like you're really secluded. This village has such unique magic to it, with the river running through it, warm friendly faces everywhere you look, and murals bringing the houses and markets to life. Sachaqa is about a five-minute walk up the hill from town and is engulfed with the jungle and all of its glory.
Charlotte Jolly - Painter
New Zealand - November 2017
My time at Sachaqa was like stepping into a bubble. Trina and Julie spoke about San Roque as the unplugging of the matrix. Goodbye high-velocity image consumption and aggressive globalization. Hello, trees, monkeys and bugs. Hello, slow-paced, simple, sweet life. Being so removed brought clarity to mind that I have never experienced anything like. Days consisted of waking, drinking a lot of local coffee, painting, reading and daily dips in the Cumbaza river to cool down. This simplicity was a beautiful base for creativity.
Carla Van DelBerg
Sculpture Trail
Italy -December 2018
How has the Amazon Rainforest influenced your art practice?
The Amazon influenced my work on so many different levels, but at the same time, I think there must be only a few human beings in the world who could manage not being influenced in such an environment.
For starters the multitude of lines and patterns and shapes nature has to offer was overwhelming. I felt like everything needed an exaggerated amount of attention, for everything is beautifully powerful in the jungle. Spending a month immersed in the rainforest is what made me realize my love for tiny details. It made me pay more attention to the small things and creatures that live with us and that we barely consider.
And as an extra, I’ve also learned that nature itself can become not only the subject of a work but also the tool to make it. Stones for colour, Sticks for brushes and Leaves for prints. Which I think is just too fascinating.
Nora Teichert -
Illustrator and travel blogger
Germany - December 2016
As a travel blogger, I have seen a lot of unique places in the south and north Peru, but I have to say, that the art center Sachaqa and the jungle village San Roque de Cumbaza totally surprised my expectations. I stayed six weeks with Trina and I enjoyed each moment. Not only did I have time and space to work on my online business, but it also made me reconnect to my creative and artistic potential. During my stay, I learned a lot about myself and my “why”. Surrounded by nature I found lots of inspiration for my artwork.
Nanao TSUKUDA - Ceramics
Japan - September and October 2016
I did the Shutu firing the traditional way of firing on the land of Sachaqa. The first time was almost completely a failure, and almost all the pieces I made were broken, actually exploded, but this experience was the most unique and wonderful gift from the jungle. I learned a lot about the relationship between material and the environment. I learned how important it is to use the material that has been traditionally chosen in that place.
This experience of failure told me how I should choose the material in one place, and also how much I should respect the traditional knowledge that has been built up for a long time at that place.
Maisie Mc Neice - UK
Visual artist -September 2015
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My residency with Sachaqa Centro de Arte was one of the best artist residency experiences I have had during my time in Peru. In just under a year I completed four artist residencies and Sachaqa was my second.
I worked there over a period of five weeks; during this time I was introduced to the use of natural pigments and spent this time exploring this new methodology. The studio space was well equipped, very spacious and a pleasure to work in. At the time of my residency, there were three people working in the space and it was perfect, at no point did we feel like we were on top of each other.
Shelby Crisco - USA Florida
ceramics and painting September 2014
I stumbled upon Sachaqa one late night after getting home from my second job. It was in that moment that I decided to take a hiatus from life. I had been working 70-hour weeks, along with a full schedule at the University.
Sachaqa gave me the opportunity to take a breath of clean jungle air and introduced me to our true planet, without the chaos of what we have created.
My time there was the most artistically inspiring time of my life thus far. Only here can you experience painting with natural minerals, in a bamboo hut, surrounded by mother earth's untouched jungle, and all the music that vibrates from within it.
What I didn't anticipate gaining from my adventure in the jungle, were the amazing friends that I would meet along the way, that will last a lifetime.
Sachaqa has taught me how to slow down and appreciate this life for how truly beautiful it is. There isn't a day that I don't think about Peru.
Megan Walsh-USA
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Oh, Sachaqa... I could really go on and on. Chances are, if you’re on the website (which you are if you’re reading this), you’re probably considering attending. In which case I have a few words of advice:
First, if you want to experience our planet at it’s finest, GO. If you want to meet and befriend the loveliest people and experience time and space in a different way, GO. If you want to immerse your body in a beautiful river, fall asleep to the sounds of thriving life, and breathe in air that will make your lungs eternally grateful, GO. If you want the essence of the jungle forever in your heart, GO.
But, if you’re afraid of bugs or being far away from a big city, DON’T GO. If you’re lazy, or can’t stand rain or humidity, DON’T GO. If you feel like you need the internet and other contemporary technologies to survive or be happy, DON’T GO. (Unless, of course, you’d like to confront those fears or irrational preferences...)
Lindsay Seligman from California Painter, Dancer, Designer
Trina’s art center is a transformative place that offers anyone, artist or not, a place to reach creative potential in any form. I stayed
Reconnect with the earth, collect her gifts, create your own art from her rivers and plants, see the faces of people with souls as old as the Amazon, learn their ancient knowledge of arts, clay, paper, dance and the mysteries of medicine from the jungles wealth, swim in the river, build an earthen house, teach the children, let the children teach you, learn from the plants, connect back to the mother earth you may have lost…she has been waiting for you.here four months and was changed in ways I will never know. Trina is a truly generous teacher who will do all she can to share her knowledge of creating mineral paints from the earth and give you a space to truly dive into your creativity. In the nearby artisan and historical town of Lamas you have opportunities to exhibit and sell your work.