

The NARROWS Art Retreat
The Creative Collective

The crew at The Narrows


The crew at The Narrows
Art is not a thing; it is a way.
Elbert Hubbard
Nelson, British Columbia, Canada
Who we are (right now):
The Narrows is an Artist Residency Centre owned and operated by Erica Konrad. It is located near Nelson, BC, a small Arts town in British Columbia, set amidst hike-able mountains, a clean refreshing lake and many wild creatures (both clean shaven and furry ones).
Erica, an artist, educator & environmental advocate, and Mike, an electrical contractor, instructor & green builder, and their two teenagers Indigo and Saxon welcome you in sharing this special place.
The Concept:
Deep in the throes of family life, kids, work commitments and more, I found myself craving alone time, to renew my creativity.
So I started dreaming about building an Artist Retreat…
A Place:
- to explore artistic ideas
- that is removed from daily life
- where to-do lists are set aside
- to share with others & nurture creativity
...........in a healthy building that inspires.
It wasn’t the land we went looking for, it found us. Out canoeing one summer day, we came upon the place, and it seemed like the perfect place to explore, build and share with other creatives.
The Vision for The Narrows was imagined.
Lucky for me, I married an artistic builder who likes to design and build strawbale eco homes as a creative outlet. Mike built a beautiful retreat space that is innovative, healthy and 'green.'
Our main focus is to nurture creativity and provide an inspirational space where artistic types can work in a peaceful, isolated setting, whether to paint, write, dance, or explore other creative skills.
Our objectives for The Narrows Artist Retreat:
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An Artist Residency that provides space and time to support artists to inspire new or on-going work.
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Art Instructors sharing their skills through day, weekend or week long workshops,
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A Gathering space for groups to brainstorm, plan and share ideas