Elba Writing Retreat

(Isola d’Elba, Tuscany, Italy 2026)

15-20 July 2026

Art Writing, Visual Culture, and Black Care

APPLY NOW
APPLY NOW

OVERVIEW

The Visual Dynamics Labs Writing Retreat is a 5-day intensive for artists, scholars, and cultural practitioners developing work across art, visual culture, and critical theory.

Set on Elba Island, the retreat provides structured time, critical dialogue, and mentorship to support high-level writing and research production.

WHAT YOU’LL DO

1. Write

  • Daily structured writing blocks

  • Independent + guided production

2. Engage

  • Seminars on visual culture + Black care

  • Peer exchange + critique

3. Develop

  • Publication pathways

  • Grant + curatorial strategy

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PARTICIPANT PROFILE

  • Artists

  • Arts Writers / Critics

  • Scholars / PhDs

  • Curators

    * Cohort limited to 8-10 participants.

FEES + DETAILS

Fee: €750

Includes:

  • Program + mentorship

  • Workshops + sessions

Not included:

  • Travel

  • Accommodation (guidance provided)

TIMELINE

  • Applications open: May 10

  • Deadline: June 5

  • Decisions: June 12

  • Retreat: July 15–20

ABOUT VDL

Visual Dynamics Labs is a global platform for cultural leadership, artistic research, and public programming grounded in the ethics of Black care. We develop fellows, produce programs, and build transnational networks across the US, Europe, and Africa.

ABOUT THE RETREAT GUIDES

Raél Jero Salley is a maker who constructs spaces for senses-minds-bodies-feeling. Salley is the author of The Visual Dynamics of Art, Black Care, and Ethics (Routledge, 2025) and, in collaboration, delivers elite writing instruction, research, and pedagogy for:

The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA); School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC); Yale University; Columbia College Chicago; Howard University; University of Chicago; Universiteit van Amsterdam (ASCA); University of Cape Town (UCT); University of the Witwatersrand (WITS); Stellenbosch University (ZA). Salley is Professor in the History of Art, Design, and Visual Culture at the Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, MD.