A NEW ARTIST-LED RETREAT PROGRAMME BY BORED PEACH CLUB
WHAT IS
RETREAT TO ART?
Retreat to Art is a programme run by the Bored Peach Club in Gozo. Each edition is shaped by a lead artist who defines the week’s focus, working framework and direction according to their practice.
Participants work in a shared studio environment while engaging directly with the island’s surroundings. Landscape and cultural context become active material within the work as mornings are dedicated to sustained making, afternoons move outward to explore depending on the edition’s emphasis, and evenings allow for conversation, critique and reflection, reinforcing the link between experience and practice.
Across five days, the programme provides structure, proximity and exchange, creating the conditions for work to deepen in response to place.
MEET THE CREW
PAT VELLA : LOGISTICS
& OPERATIONS
Pat oversees the planning and coordination of Retreat to Art, managing all logistics from initial preparation to the final day of the programme. She liaises with local partners, coordinates accommodation and transfers, and ensures the week runs smoothly behind the scenes.
She has extensive experience supporting artists and cultural professionals within structured creative programmes, with a strong understanding of what is required to balance organisation with flexibility. Her focus is on creating a well managed, supportive environment where participants can concentrate fully on their work and experience.
Pat’s strengths lie in clear communication, attention to detail and hands on problem solving, ensuring a professional and seamless retreat experience.
PETE CODLING : LEAD ARTIST, SEPTEMBER 2026
Pete Codling (UK) is a multidisciplinary artist whose practice moves between drawing, installation and site-responsive work. His projects often explore repetition, material behaviour and the energy of public space, examining how environments influence form and perception.
Pete was an Artist in Residence at the Bored Peach Club in Gozo, where he developed work in close dialogue with the island’s architecture and cultural rhythms. His experience on the island informs his approach to Retreat to Art, grounding the programme in lived context rather than detached observation.
For the 2026 edition of Retreat to Art, Pete leads the studio programme, setting the tone for the week and working alongside participants as ideas develop in real time. His role is to shape the working framework while remaining actively present in the studio, allowing structure and experimentation to unfold together.
WHY RETREAT TO ART?
Retreat to Art offers the rare chance to work within a setting where creative practice and lived experience unfold side by side.
The programme is designed to allow time for making, wandering, observing and absorbing. Studio sessions flow naturally into encounters with the island’s surroundings, whether in village streets, along the coastline or within open countryside. What is seen, heard and experienced during the day gradually finds its way back into the work.
The atmosphere is open and sociable. Artists share space, conversation and meals while maintaining space for individual focus. The group remains intentionally small, creating an environment that feels supportive rather than overwhelming.
Across five days, Retreat to Art offers immersion, exchange and the freedom to explore ideas at a pace that feels both relaxed and deeply engaged.
