We-Che Art Residency

WE-CHE was the name of this place, it means « young man » in Mapuche language.
We decided to keep it and make it our’s when we started the metamorphosis of this place in an artist residency and in some way this name reflects an essential part of our motivation: give artist a place to rest and rejuvenate.
We-Che art Residency is an artist run project, founded by the artistic duo Raom&Loba. In line with our experience and our own vision of the world, we humbly wish to offer others what we have received from our peers at different points in our artistic careers: an inspiring place, a warm and quiet workspace conducive to constructive exchanges with artists from every parts of the world… but also a small, human-scale adventure.

Our project is young and will keep growing with you…

Located close to the historic village of Trevelin (13km) founded by Welsh immigrants. In a beautiful natural nest, in the heart of a valley facing the pre-Andean mountains, backing onto a protected natural area of ​​over 40 hectares, crossed by a river and its waterfalls. Facing the 16th of October Valley, its vineyards, its famous and vast 5million tulip field, and the majestic mountains in the background. Beautiful changing skies and clear nights without light pollution.
Come here to decompress, rejuvenate gathering new inspiration alongside like-minded artists and writers and devote space and time to your creativity in the middle of mythic Patagonia in a stunning, nature-filled place..

Quiet, natural, rural but not totally remote and with human activity around… so you may hear sometimes some normal outdoor sound (road, chainsaws, dogs, cows…)

Contrasting with the rapidly changing weather, sometimes cold, sometimes windy.. you will find in We-Che a warm place you can feel at home, relaxed and inspired. Perhaps you wont find here everything you are used to, but we hope you will discover new ones that you will longer when back at home !

The artist residency is located in a rural and natural area, bordering the Cascadas de Nant Y Fall Protected Natural Area and just a few kilometers from the southern entrance of Los Alerces National Park. We-Che is situated on the 259 Road, approximately 13 km from the town of Trevelín and 15 km from Futaleufú and the Chilean border.
It is a quiet place but not totally remote and with human activity around… so you may hear sometimes some normal outdoor sound (cars on the road, chainsaws, dogs, cows…)

It is possible to come to We-Che year-round; however, Patagonia’s climate is changeable and sometimes extreme, and we believe that the « good season » is preferable, especially for an artist residency, in order to fully enjoy nature and outdoor spaces.

Keep in mind that in Patagonia, perhaps more than anywhere else, the seasons are very distinct, and the climate at the foot of the Andes can change abruptly (frost in summer, strong winds, sudden rain).

Thus, mid-December, January, and February are generally considered the austral summer months, with warm temperatures and a very dry and windy climate. The months from mid-March to mid-June correspond to autumn, June, July, and August are the months of the southern winter (short days and cold, snowy, and/or very rainy weather), and those from mid-October to mid-December to spring.

For creative and production residencies, to take advantage of outdoor spaces, the surrounding natural areas, and nature, we ideally recommend choosing the period between late October and May.

You can download a general map with the main points of interest around We-Che

We-Che is our home, and when we decided to create in this place an artist residency, we just wanted to share this inspiring place, creating a quiet workspace conducive to constructive exchanges… but also let place for a small, human-scale adventure. In line with our experience and our own vision of the world, we prioritize practices that respect the Nature and the people who inhabit it.

The We-Che artist residency welcomes emerging and established writers, creators, artists from all countries to spend time and space away from their usual environment to retreat and reflect, to create, and rest in front of an imposing landscape in a peaceful rural environment.
In We-Che you wont feel any kind of pressure for you to achieve something, to produce, to concrete, unless you want it…
Come here to escape the frenzy and decompress, rejuvenate gathering new inspiration alongside like-minded artists and writers and devote space and time to your creativity. Enjoy art life in the middle of mythic Patagonia a stunning, nature-filled place…

We think bringing artists together allow them to exchange professional and emotive approaches towards new experiences and aesthetic realities and help to focus on the importance of meaningful and multi-layered cultural exchanges through meditative nature observation and conscient artistic practices. We also encourage projectssearching to connect to Patagonia as a natural historical and cultural environnement (fauna, flora, wild life, landscape, and History) and promoting the interaction and respectful relationships between Art and Nature.

We welcome creators from all discipline if their project fits to We-Che, thats to say we also evaluate if our structure is able or not to give all necessary space to what they want to achieve. Thats why we will also pay attention during selection process, to mix artists in order they form a good « team » and manage to make an harmonious balanced blend that promote the better experience to each one.

Disciplines

We-Che is the place we chose to live and work.
Raom was born in Buenos Aires and Loba in Paris. We are also artists, and as an artistic duo, we lived and worked together in France for 30 years (in Paris and the Champagne region). In 2023, we decided to cross the ocean and settle in Argentina. We made our home in this inspiring place in Patagonia and decided to create our own artist residency program. We have always greatly enjoyed participating in artist residency programs and nature-based art projects. In fact, throughout our careers, we have participated in numerous forms of self-organized collective projects with other artists: large annual exhibitions, community galleries, artist book publications, residencies, land art or sculpture symposiums, art in nature, and site-specific art projects. Today, it is important for us to share our experience, to support and host artists from around the world. This is our way of thanking and perpetuating the immense contribution of all the residency programs in which we participate.

Jeanne Borensztajn
Writer and Visual book artist.
Born in Paris, graduated of Ecole des Beaux-Arts de Paris with special mention of jurors. She founded Dynastes Editions in Paris. Her work mixes drawing and writing. She also usually coaches writers and artists in their writing or research projects. She focuses on book or writing/drawing related projects.

Pola Martinez
Born in Paris, Pola is a franco Argentinian textil designer graduated at HEAR – Haute Ecole des Arts du Rhin (Mulhouse, France) and visual artist she lives and works in Cherbourg, France. She specifically focuses on textile art and natural fiber oriented projects.

Applications are accepted year-round on a rolling basis

For any doubt or interrogations before applying, feel free to write us, we try to answer everyone within 3-5 business days, but this may not always be possible due to the large number of submissions.

We are launching our residency program: invest in your creative practice and take the opportunity of being one of our very first resident and help our project grow faster !

We can welcome 1 to 3 (max 4) residents at the same time
for a duration of 1 or 2 month
We cannot support public workshops or exhibitions for the moment.

Austral Summer 2026 residencies (January, February)
Autumn 2026 residencies (March, April, May)
Winter 2026 residencies (June, July, August)
Spring 2026 residencies (September, October, November)

Email wecheresidency@gmail.com for detailed information

We-Che art Residency is an independent artist run project and is currently unable to provide financial support for visiting artists. For artists applying for grants and scholarships in their home country We-Che can provide official documents and letters of invitation as necessary.

Residency Fee

1500 USD $ per month per artist
Including accommodation, fresh bedsheet and towels, electricity, heating, water, gaz and local support.

Download and fill the application form and email it at: wecheresidency@gmail.com
You may also send us a pdf with a brief description of your project or what you want to achieve in We-Che along with some pictures of related works and any information that can help us understand.

After the selection process, selected artists will be invited to a Whatsapp video Call to coordinate options and details. To complete the reservation of your residency, a 500$usd deposit (non refundable) will be asked. (by wire transfer or paypal). 1 month before your stay, a copy of your plane ticket, copy of your passeport and copy of your travel insurance.