ROOTED RETREATS
VALLE CRUCES ART AND YOGA RETREAT
Center yourself as you join us for a three night retreat to the mountains of North Carolina where we will do a deep dive into the ancient practices of art and yoga.
PAYMENT INFORMATION
Cost: $1200.00
$200 nonrefundable deposit goes toward total cost.
August 20: Remaining half ($400.00) due.
September 20: Final payment ($600.00) due.
Price is all-inclusive: Single room with private bath; three meals a day (special diets accommodated); professional instruction from decades of experience and dedicated practice; all art materials included; yoga mat and props available upon request. Travel is not included, though airport shuttle is available by request. The Valle Crucis Conference Center is a historic Episcopal mission church complex and national historic district located near Valle Crucis, Watauga County, North Carolina. The Gothic Revival style, gable-front church on the grounds was built around 1924. The surrounding area abounds with local art, dining, shopping, and more in the mountains of Western North Carolina.
ABOUT THE EVENT
Valle Crucis Conference Center, 146 Skiles Way, Banner Elk, NC 28604, USA
Time > Location Sep 20, 4:00 PM – Sep 23, 12:00 PM
Greet the first week of fall this year in the mountains of Western North Carolina with Melissa Wilkinson, Professor of Art, and Ardelle Walters, yoga teacher and Licensed Professional Counselor. Join us for a three night retreat where we will focus on meditative painting and immersive yoga. Participants will stay on the gorgeous 426 acre property of the Valle Crucis Conference Center.
The retreat size will be kept small. Each day you will be guided through posture practice as well as the ancient study of yoga. Then you will take a deep dive into the history, practice and application of watercolor as you create an illuminated manuscript painting. Lectures, demonstrations, and working time will lead to an original work of art which will be framed for you to take home. This retreat is open to all skill levels in both painting and yoga. Melissa and Ardelle are committed to fostering an experience that is focused on peace, creativity, intellectual enrichment, and presence.
Make friends; connect with your body and mind; and leave renewed, deepened and refreshed.
About Ardelle
Ardelle Walters is a Licensed Professional Counselor and a 200-hour certified yoga instructor. As a psychotherapist she has extensive experience working with adults on a wide range of issues including anxiety, depression, grief, self-esteem, and relationships.
“I came to yoga after a health incident in 2015, looking for a way to calm my mind and strengthen my body. After several months of practicing yoga and seeing a therapist, my joy began to return, first on the mat and then in my life. It wasn’t long before I began thinking of ways to share yogi learnings in my counseling practice and at retreats and conferences where I was a speaker. I completed the 200 hour training at Circle Yoga Shala in the Ozark mountains of Arkansas the year that we moved from Little Rock to Memphis, and shifted my work from clinical to conference and retreat settings—especially to clergy and other caretakers and their families. I see myself as a facilitator of self-care. My training as a counselor, my training as a yoga instructor, and my spiritual practices all work together to inform my conference and retreat work, my yoga teaching, my own yoga practice, and my life.”
About Melissa
Melissa's artwork work has been featured in wide reaching publications throughout the country including three editions of New American Paintings and Manifest’s INDA, International Drawing Annual four times. She has shown in various galleries nationally and internationally including South Korea and India and has won numerous awards throughout her career. She has won several fellowships and grants including the Arkansas Arts Council Fellowship in Painting in 2012 and voted a “woman to watch” from the National Museum of Women in the Arts- Arkansas Chapter. Her work is amongst private collections throughout the country and abroad. She serves as Associate Professor of Art-Painting at Arkansas State University in Jonesboro. She lives with her wife and two dogs in the greater Memphis, TN area.
"I'm interested in creating a vibrant classroom where students are met with patience, at their level, and honored for who they are. I want learning to be fun, accessible and dynamic."
Upon filling out the Registration Contact form below, an email will be sent to you directly with a fillable PDF to formally register. Payment options will be included in the email and a receipt sent following successful payment.
Registration Contact
Thanks so much for your interest in attending the Rooted Retreat! Fill out the contact info below and a registration email will be sent you you shortly by the host. Payment info will be linked in the email.