PORFIA PROJECT: CREATIVE REFUGE 2026/2027
After a decade hosting artists through CAMPO, an international residency program, I’m opening my home at La Porfia to a small group of self-directed creatives. Set on a former sheep estancia on 95 hectares in the hills of Garzón, Uruguay, this twelve-day creative refuge is about disconnecting from daily life and reconnecting with yourself, nature and your artistic projects. You’ll have uninterrupted time and wide-open space to focus on your work and the rare opportunity to live alongside others equally committed to their practice in this magical place.
This isn’t a traditional residency, retreat, or workshop, and, unlike CAMPO, it’s an independent, paid project. There are no critiques, classes, or required outcomes. Instead, up to ten creatives arrive with a project, practice, or question already in motion. Days are spent however your process requires. The only fixed point in the day is dinner. Otherwise, your time is entirely your own — to work, rest, wander, or do nothing at all. Evenings unfold with good food, thoughtful conversation, and the occasional fireside chat.
I’ll be there as your host — available if you need anything, present at the table each evening, but otherwise out of your way.
The luxury here is silence, slowing down, long dinners, generous company, and the freedom to follow where your curiosity leads under big Uruguayan skies.
La Porfia, the name that came with the house, means wayward, or stubbornly persistent, in Spanish. I can’t think of a better word for a creative life: the determination to keep questioning, listening, and making only what you can make.
If that sounds like something you’ve been longing for, I’d love to hear from you.
HOST + HOUSE
I’m Heidi Lender, a photographer, writer, and the founder of CAMPO, an international artist residency and festival I created in 2016. Over the past decade, I’ve welcomed hundreds of artists, writers, musicians, filmmakers, chefs, and thinkers to Uruguay, always believing that place has the power to shape what we make.
The slow rhythm of rural life, the vast horizon, the silence and stillness of Garzon changed not only how I see and create, but ultimately how I live. I came here for the beauty. I stayed because I grew into myself. Again and again, I’ve watched — and experienced — this place do its quiet work. It changes the pace of a day. It sharpens attention. It creates space for conversations, ideas, and creative breakthroughs that often struggle to emerge elsewhere.
The Porfia Project grew from that experience. I wanted to create something more personal by opening my home to a handful of creatives at a time. Not because I know exactly what this place will give you, but because I know it will leave its mark. It always does.
La Porfia is my home, a restored former sheep farm set on 95 hectares in the rolling hills outside Pueblo Garzón, about two and a half hours from Montevideo. It’s quiet here. You’ll hear birds before cars, see more stars than streetlights, and have room to think, to settle, to create.
The estancia isn’t polished — it’s soulful. The house is simple, deeply personal and full of character, more collected than curated. It’s rustic and rural, connected to the landscape, off-grid and powered by the sun. Life moves slower here. And that’s the point.
HOW TO APPLY
If you’d like to join the Porfia Project: Creative Refuge, please send me a letter.
Tell me a little about yourself and your creative practice, what you’re currently working on and what you hope to work on while you’re here. Also, let me know why this feels like the right moment for you to attend. If you have a website or portfolio, I’d love to see it.
Please also include:
- Full name
- Date of birth
- City and country of residence
- Dietary restrictions or food allergies
- Medical conditions, severe allergies, or accessibility needs that may affect your stay or that I should be aware of in case of an emergency
- A brief note confirming you’re comfortable staying in a rural setting with uneven terrain, insects, farm animals, a dog, and limited immediate access to medical facilities.
All medical information will be kept strictly confidential.
Accommodations are private, for one person or a creative couple. A limited number of twin rooms are available for creator friends or collaborators who wish to attend together. The program fee is charged per person. If you’re applying with someone and are interested in sharing a twin room, let me know in your letter and I will follow up with details.
Applications are accepted on a rolling basis. I read every letter personally and aim to respond within one week. My hope is to bring together a group of creatives who will thrive both independently and together. Because space is limited to up to ten participants, I encourage applying early.
Send letters to: heidi@porfiaproject.com
Price: $3,300 USD per person
Choose the session that works for you:
- December 9-20, 2026
- January 4-15, 2027
- February 15-26, 2027
CHECK IN: 4:00pm
CHECK OUT: 11:00 am
PAYMENT + CANCELLATION
Upon acceptance, a 50% deposit is required within five days to reserve your place. Payment may be made by Venmo, PayPal, or bank transfer.
The Porfia Project: Creative Refuge requires a minimum of six participants. Once a gathering reaches that minimum, it will be confirmed, and the remaining balance will be due within 48 hours. Each gathering will be confirmed no later than 60 days before its start date. If the minimum number of participants has not been reached by then, all deposits will be refunded in full.
Once a gathering has been confirmed, all payments become non-refundable. I strongly encourage purchasing travel insurance to protect your investment in the event you need to cancel your trip.
If Porfia Project: Creative Refuge must be canceled due to unforeseen circumstances, all payments will be refunded in full.
Your stay includes a private bedroom, shared bathrooms, shared studio space, all meals prepared by an in-house chef, Wi-Fi, and exclusive use of the 95-hectare estancia, including the barn studio, plunge pool, hiking trails, and quiet places to write, think, or make. Round-trip transfer between Pueblo Garzón and La Porfia is also included.
Airfare, travel to and from Pueblo Garzón, rental car, art materials, travel insurance, and honor bar are not included.
La Porfia is about fifteen minutes from Pueblo Garzón, deep in Uruguay’s gaucho country. A rental car isn’t necessary for the refuge itself, but it’s recommended if you’d like to explore the surrounding area during your stay.
Please note: La Porfia is an off-grid property powered primarily by solar energy. Although a backup generator is available, extended periods of heavy rain can occasionally result in temporary interruptions to electricity. It’s all part of life in the Uruguayan countryside.
*The Porfia Project is an evolving umbrella for creative gatherings of many kinds—from intimate residencies and longer stays to workshops, private retreats, editorial productions, and one-night events. If you’d like to dream up something that isn’t listed here, I’d love to hear from you.
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