ILLUSTRATION retreat

with CELESTE MOUNTJOY

OCTOBER 18-28, 2027

7 selected participants will be invited to attend a 10-day, fully funded illustration retreat in Chios, Greece, from October 18–28, 2027, led by visual artist and writer Celeste Mountjoy.

Set within Eona, our restored historic home in the village of Nenita, the retreat is an opportunity to step away from everyday life and spend time drawing, experimenting, thinking, and making alongside a small group of creatives.

Across ten days, Celeste will guide participants through drawing, storytelling and visual exploration, encouraging them to develop ideas through experimentation and observation. The retreat will lead towards the creation of a finished body of work, while leaving plenty of space for each participant to follow their own interests and way of working. This retreat is not about producing perfect illustrations. It is about finding ideas, following them, making things, changing your mind, and seeing where the work takes you.

The programme combines guided workshops with independent studio time, shared meals, time outdoors, and opportunities to explore Chios together. The pace is intentionally spacious, allowing the work to develop naturally over the course of the retreat.

Open to illustrators, artists, designers, writers, and anyone interested in visual storytelling. You do not need to have a formal illustration background to apply.

Apply now

PLAY & EXPERIMENTATION

The retreat is designed as a space to try things without worrying too much about whether they work. Participants will be encouraged to experiment with different approaches, make unexpected connections, and allow ideas to evolve through the process of making.

DRAWING & STORYTELLING

Through a series of workshops with Celeste, participants will explore how drawing can communicate ideas, experiences, characters, and stories. The focus will be on developing a personal visual language rather than following a fixed style.

LIMITED SPOTS

To keep the experience intimate and hands-on, spaces are intentionally limited to a small group of participants.

FULLY FUNDED EXPERIENCE

Six selected participants will attend the retreat free of charge, with accommodation, meals, workshops, materials, and activities fully covered. Participants are only responsible for their travel to Chios.

Meet the Instructor

Celeste Mountjoy, also known as Filthyratbag, is an Australian artist, illustrator and writer, best known by her online persona, Filthyratbag.

Her work sits somewhere between illustration, comics and visual storytelling. Using expressive drawings, handwritten text and a distinctive sense of humour, she turns everyday experiences into stories about relationships, womanhood, anxiety, sexuality, body image, mental health and the absurdity of being human.

Celeste began drawing and making stories as a child, filling notebooks with drawings and writing from an early age. As a teenager, she began sharing her illustrations and comics online under the name Filthyratbag. What began as a personal outlet quickly developed into a significant international audience, with hundreds of thousands of people following her work.

At just 16, she was profiled by Dazed, and her work has since been featured internationally by publications including The New York Times, Forbes, BBC and Frankie. Her illustrations have appeared in The New York Times, and her work has been exhibited in galleries and art spaces across Australia. She has also created large-scale murals and worked with brands and cultural organisations including Audible and Australian fashion label Wah-Wah.

In 2022, she published her first book, What the Fuck Is This, an illustrated coming-of-age story exploring mental health, relationships, grief, substance abuse and the experience of growing up. Her second book, Filthyratbag, followed as a further collection of her distinctive drawings and writing.

What makes Celeste's practice particularly interesting is the way she moves between image and language. A drawing is rarely just a drawing in her work. Words become part of the image, humour becomes a storytelling device, and seemingly simple characters can carry complicated ideas and emotions.

For this retreat, Celeste will bring that approach into the studio, working closely with participants on drawing, storytelling, developing ideas and finding ways to communicate something personal through visual language.

Rather than teaching participants how to draw like Celeste, the focus will be on understanding how she approaches her own work: how an observation becomes an idea, how an idea becomes a drawing, and how a collection of drawings can begin to form a larger story.

Over ten days at Eona, participants will have the opportunity to work directly with Celeste, experiment with their own visual language and develop a finished body of work of their own.

FAQS & TERMS AND CONDITIONS

  • To apply for the retreat, participants are asked to submit a short application along with a €25 application fee. The fee helps support the review process and allows us to carefully curate a thoughtful and engaged group of participants. The retreat designed to be accessible while maintaining an intentional selection process.

    Deadline for application May 15th, 2027

    50 shortlisted artists will be asked to provide more information by June 1st 15th, 2027.

  • Six selected participants will receive a fully funded place in the retreat.

    Accommodation, meals, workshops, materials, and all retreat activities will be fully covered by Descoverartists.

    Any additional expenses (travel, private car rental, travel insurance, etc.) are to be covered by the participant.

  • Yes! You can send us an email with your full name and email address and any changes you would like to make to your application at hello@descoverartists.com

  • Residencies take place at Eona House, a restored historic home in Nenita, Chios, a peaceful village in the South of the island known for its traditional architecture, quiet atmosphere, and proximity to the sea. The space is designed to offer artists time for focused creative work, rest, and meaningful connection with others.

  • Artists will share a room with up to one other artist. After acceptance, we will send an email with all the practical information needed to help you plan your trip and experience.

  • Expectations: Cleaning and maintaining the house during our retreats is undertaken collectively. The artists are expected to respect the island, its inhabitants, the environment, animals, and local culture and to respect the other residents.

    Living expenses: While there are a few expenses the residents need to consider while at the retreat, it is worth having funds for trips to local cafes and the like. Calculate approximately 5-15 euros a day for such incidentals.

    Minimum number of applicants: This retreats run only if a minimum number of participants is reached. If not, Descoverartists will inform all confirmed participants and issue a full refund for the application fee.

    Damages to the house or other areas on the island: We are not responsible for any loss or damage caused by the artists during their stay at our retreats. The artists must adhere to the house rules established by the owners or pay any fees charged after checkout.