WHO CAN APPLY

The Wayward retreat is open to all artists in all disciplines who:

  1. are women (cis or trans), genderqueer/non-binary, genderfluid, or another marginalized gender

  2. are over the age of 21

  3. are actively pursuing their creative calling with focused, vocational intention

If you are wondering about your eligibility for Wayward, please contact us.

HOW TO APPLY

Artists interested in Wayward must complete the following :

APPLICATION — At the bottom of this page you can see a preview of the online application questions. These are designed to help us learn about who you are and why you’re interested in the retreat.

WORK SAMPLES — You will be asked to upload or link to work samples in the online application. For visual artists, this might be a portfolio or website. For writers, this can be up to 20 pages of your writing. For other artists, let us know what you make and we can discuss how best to share it with us. We’re not asking for samples to judge your skill; we’re interested in your voice and body of experiences.

If you are selected as a finalist, we’ll contact you about an INTERVIEW. These interviews are an additional chance for us to get to know you. The Wayward experience is intimate and immersive and not for everyone. We want to make sure your goals align with what the retreat is able to provide.

TIMELINE

Current and future applications for Wayward have been postponed due to covid-19. When new applications are open, we will post about them here.

THE APPLICATION QUESTIONS

In the online application, you will be asked the following questions. For the purposes of this form, when we say “art,” we mean visual art, writing, music, or any other creative medium.

  1. Please tell us your:

    • Name

    • Date of birth

    • Pronouns

    • Address

    • Email

    • Phone number

  2. How did you hear about the retreat?

  3. Have you attended the retreat before? If so, what year?

  4. What do you create? Describe your art for us.

  5. Tell us where you are in your creative career. As a starting point: How much time a week do you spend on your art? Is it a full or part-time job? What have you achieved in your art that you’re proud of? What goals do you still want to accomplish?

  6. What are you hoping to get out of this retreat? How, specifically, will you use your solo work time? Why is this a good moment in your career for you to take this retreat?

  7. How much of the retreat would you prefer to work solo, versus group workshops, collaborations, creative coaching, etc.?

  8. If you have attended Wayward in the past, please tell us why you would like to attend this year. How have you changed? What are you looking for now?

  9. Are you comfortable with and able to participate in:

    • Moderate hiking?

    • Swimming?

    • Canoeing or kayaking?

    • Sauna?

  10. Are you comfortable around nudity? (Retreaters often swim and sauna nude.)

  11. Are you comfortable in social situations and groups? Wayward is a week of intimate group living and connecting with others is a part of the experience.

  12. Do you have any allergies? Any physical limitations we should know about? The nearest hospital is over an hour away, so please let us know if you have any issues or conditions that might require our awareness.

  13. Do you have any dietary restrictions?

  14. Would you like to be considered for the Room Share Discount? This is a $150 discount for sharing a room (but not a bed) with another retreater.

  15. Do you have any issues that would make it impossible for you to share a room (not a bed) with another retreater?

  16. Would you like to be considered for the Inclusion Scholarship? This is a $1000 fund for at least one artist of color.

  17. Describe the reason you make art in six words.

  18. What does the word "wayward" evoke for you?

  19. Is there anything we haven’t addressed that you’d like us to know?

  20. Please confirm that have read, understood, and agreed to our Code of Conduct.