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Artist Fellowship | Features

Artist Fellows of Getaway

With the hustle and bustle of city life, we know it can be hard for artists to find uninterrupted time to create. That’s why we created our Artist Fellowship Program, to give creatives a space in nature to work on their projects. We love seeing what our artists come up with and we’re excited to share some of our recent fellows.

Painter Amanda Nolan Booker has been painting and drawing ever since she was young. However, it wasn’t until 2016 when she decided to go back to school and pursue painting full time.

“My work deals with memory, perception, and experience,” Amanda said. “I’m inspired by the everyday, in the mundane, but I’m equally inspired by mythology and storytelling. I want to account for the things that make up a life which are not easily defined or depicted.”

Amanda prefers to escape anywhere that’s quiet, so our Atlanta Outpost was the perfect spot for her to take some time to create.

“I work best when I’m alone and can listen to music and/or have conversations with myself out loud,” Amanda says. “Even if I’m not actively painting and just need to brainstorm, it’s important that I find a place for uninterrupted reflection.”

Six years ago, Richard Bonasoro turned his backyard into a small farm in the hope of growing his own food and living a healthier lifestyle. During this project, he started thinking about what he was putting on his skin as well.

“I started looking into soap making and finally made my first batch of soap right in the backyard in my garden,” Richard said. “I wanted a bar of soap with ingredients you could recognize without Google: organic olive oil, organic coconut oil, essential oils, and herbs and sometimes even vegetables from my garden.”

As part of his fellowship, Richard picked up his work station and moved it to Getaway Blake Brook. The soap he made there, inspired by his stay, combined pine, fir, needle, cedarwood, and cypress together with a lemony scent.

Richard, who owns and operates the Backyard Soap Company, says his dream creative project is to build a backyard garden utopia that’s inspired by The Secret Garden.

Interested in tapping into your own creativity in nature? Escape today.