In the beautiful mountainous region of Haiti just one hour south of Port au Prince airport there is a model school that locals call ADECA. With the support of Haiti Partners, they’re creating an education-centered community development approach where parents contribute 4 service hours weekly while also participating in continued education including village savings and loans groups, permaculture, preventative health, child protection and positive discipline, and gender equality. Their motto is lifelong learning. 

As part of their effort to inspire artistic expression, lifelong learning and to nurture entrepreneurship and self-reliance, they’ve established Bawosya Cooperative and handmade paper production. They are creating beautiful art out of paper made from exotic fibers such as mango, banana and vetiver.

Bawosya Cooperative and ADECA are creating a unique Artist-In-Residence program to provide international artists with the opportunity to work with papers from exotic and natural fibers. Even more, those interested in learning new techniques, will develop a special work which involves selecting the very fibers and creating the paper for their work.

During the residency artists will be assisted by local paper producers and work under the guidance of master artist Hector Rodriguez from Argentina. Mr. Rodriguez has specialized in the art of handmade paper for 16 years and regularly teaches in universities and institutes internationally including Academia Di Belle Arti Di Brera of Milan and Academia Di Belle Arti Di Napoli. The beautiful, life-giving environment rich with culture and personality will inspire new creations as artists become a part of the of the educational experience of the students and their parents.

Meals and Lodging

Artists lodge just one and a half miles from ADECA school and Bawosya Cooperative at Bellevue. With the inside/outside living, the architectural design allows guests to experience the natural beauty of this unique setting. It’s run by Merline and John Engle. John has lived on this piece of land for most of the last 20 years. Merline, who was born and raised in Haiti but who also lived in the US is known for her hospitality and culinary creations. Merline’s cuisine is a fusion of Haitian-Creole and International with an emphasis on being natural, fresh and healthy.

Typical day:

1. Meditation-Yoga led by Yoga master and artist, Makeda
2. Breakfast
3. Work – with Haitian papermaking artists – And, for those who wish to, spend time painting with children.
4. Lunch together in workspace
5. Work
6. Relaxing dinner at Bellevue Guesthouse with various Haitian dinner guests

Artistic Options

Painters Paint …

• On special conventional painting projects on handmade paper in which the artist is involved in creating, beginning with determining the fibers and gathering them in the mountains of Haiti.
• Dito design, using fingers, fibers and natural colors for creation, a completely unique artist experience.
• Simply by picking your paper and paint to your heart’s delight and experiment, to the extent you wish to with new techniques. Do whatever you want.

Sculptors Sculpt…

• Choose handmade paper from vertiver, corn, mango, etc. to sculpt with
• Select fiber of your choice and mold it while it’s wet

Calendar Options – September 19 – 25 & October 10-16 (each is 6 nights)

Cost: $1,850 (includes all in-country costs. Artist pay and book their own flights to Port au Prince airport. There will also be live music and recording during the residency.

Contributing to the cause

Each artist contributes one piece of original art to school along with non-exclusive reproduction rights. We envision reproducing art on handmade paper both for wall hangings, on greeting cards, etc.

Learn More

To learn more about this interesting work, visit the Bawosya Cooperative Paper Project Facebook page and check out the Paper Project flickr album.

Want to apply?

To apply, contact Schools Program Coordinator, Erik Badger. Please include the following:

• Complete contact info.
• A brief explanation of what type of art you do and what interests you about this opportunity.
• Which dates you’re interested in coming.
• A link to or attachment with examples of your artwork.