Odysseys Costa Rica

Intercultural ODYSSEYS Costa Rica is a civic, social and non-governmental organization (NGO) founded by Royce Clay Slape Seiger, himself a lifelong artist, in the belief that creating and sharing art across borders is a powerful tool for opening up human hearts and challenging the barriers that separate them. They have proudly hosted artists from as far abroad as Newfoundland, Canada, Australia, Sweden, Switzerland, France, Germany, Portugal, Argentina, Mexico, U.S.A. and England (including from the remote island of Guernsey, of the English Channel islands) - and growing. Though Spanish is the local language, English is spoken widely, and they've hosted artists who spoke neither. Those are the kinds of challenges the organizers love. So if you can imagine your project and have the professional skills to make it happen during your residency, they do everything possible to provide you with the uninterrupted time, space and inspiration you need.

All visual artists who wish are offered exhibition space in the partnering Holistic Wellness Center. Open to the public with an artist's reception, should they choose. Many have exhibited at the local Regional Museum and the National Gallery in the capital. On a weekly basis all artists are provided the opportunity to share their work. Always optional.

Artists choose from two outstanding options: A full cultural immersion experience in a home stay with a carefully selected host family, most meals included, or in the Holistic Wellness Center which offers better control of diet and more ample indoor works spaces.

Host families are carefully selected for the indoor studio spaces they can offer artists who choose the Home Stay option, and the Holistic Wellness Center provides spacious, open-air indoor work spaces which may be better suited to artists requiring more formal indoor work spaces.

When necessary certain requirements can be provided apart from the home stay, such as a formal studio for visual artists, or access to a piano at one of the local music schools, for composers: such requests must be made during the application process.

ODYSSEYS Costa Rica is based in San Ramón, Alajuela known as the "city of poets" and home to the hillsides of Las Musas (The Muses):

• only 1-1/2 hours from Arenal Volcano and Mineral Hot Springs
• 1 hour northwest of the numerous art galleries and museums of the capital city of San José
• and a quick 45 minutes from the lovely beach of Puntarenas with its Ferry launching dock to other exotic beaches.

Average temperatures run in the mid-70sF (25 degrees C) year-round.