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Short-term artist residencies
in a natural, rustic environment​

Situated on the eastern shore of Kezar Lake in Lovell, Maine, Hewnoaks provides artists across all disciplines and career stages unencumbered time to think, work, and experiment.

Learn About Our Summer Residency

1-2 Week Residencies

Short-term, fully subsidized residencies purpose-built for artists balancing busy schedules.

Hewnoaks offers a rare chance to disconnect from the pressures of daily life and dive deep into creative practice.

Your Time,
Your Way

At Hewnoaks, artists have unbounded creative freedom to use their time however serves them best.

There are no output requirements, no expectations to share a finished work, and no mandatory community-facing obligations.

All Artists Welcome

Hewnoaks welcomes emerging and mid-career artists across all disciplines and identities.

Whatever your background, whatever your medium, we offer a safe, supportive space to bring your vision to life.

Hewnoaks Summer Residency

Each residency is tailored to give artists a peaceful, distraction-free environment for open-ended exploration and creation. Whether you’re drafting a novel, editing an existing body of work and researching your next project, this is a space to immerse yourself in the creative process, whatever shape it takes.

Space to Create

Steeped in history, Hewnoaks’ rustic cabins offer artists a secluded, comfortable space to live and create.

With simple accommodations and distractions screened out, residents can focus, reflect, and work without interruption.

Quiet Surroundings

Set against the backdrop of Kezar Lake and surrounded by towering pines, Hewnoaks affords residents a rare sense of stillness and possibility.

The serene, natural beauty fosters deep concentration and creative breakthroughs, an environment that’s as regenerative as it is generative.

Creative Community

While artists work independently at Hewnoaks, a sense of connection naturally forms.

Shared meals, informal conversations, and creative exchanges forge a community where ideas flow and inspiration abounds.

"Well-run residencies that give artists space and few obligations truly convey a sense of respect for an artist’s work, and it always renews my faith that there are indeed systems and people who are rooting for us, for our need for time and space, those two slippery and often elusive things in this sideways relentless world so gripped by productivity."
— Eleanor Conover, '25Visual artist and educator • Topsham, ME
"I had an incredible experience at Hewnoaks, one that I am still reflecting on, full of spontaneous creating, great conversation, and adventures in the woods. Time really felt different and seemed to move at a pace which allowed me to create, reflect, and also enjoy what the area has to offer. The community and cohort were wonderful, kind, talented, and I was excited to get to meet everyone and hear about their work and process. My time at Hewnoaks was filled with lots of puppetry exploration, animation, woodsy adventures, and wonderful conversations with other artists. I am grateful that places like this exist for creatives."
— Mike Annear '26Animation artist, educator, and puppeteer • Somerville, MA
"My time at Hewnoaks shifted my entire prospective of myself as an artist. Before I thought of myself as a person who did art, now I wear the title of artist with pride. It built the confidence in me to trust that the creative ideas I have in my head are worth making. The mixture of gorgeous landscape, almost solitude and very little societal distractions is the perfect combo for creativity to flow."
— Hannah Hansen '23Visual artist
"Hewnoaks gave me space that I didn’t know I needed to focus on developing an individual voice-as an emerging artist having this kind of held and intentional time is essential and transformative. I felt supported not only by the other artists at the residency but by the cabin, the lake, the air, and the inherent calm of the space."
— Isabel Ball '23Performing artist
"The simple, natural environs and the evocative nature of the cabins and grounds - plus the lack of cell service - allowed me to sink into my creative process in a way that was truly profound. I will always remember my time at Hewnoaks and what it meant to me."
— Caitlin Scholl '23Writer
"I found Hewnoaks so magical. I entered a space that was so productive and creative and also healing. The lake, the mountains, the quiet, the loons. My work felt so focused. I am deeply grateful for the time and space and wonderful people."
— Anonymous '23

Former Hewnoaks Residents

"EVERYTHING about Hewnoaks was extraordinary. The natural surroundings were absolutely stunning, and my quiet cabin (Pine Clad), nestled in the woods, was both cozy and inspiring, with hand-painted ceilings and a spacious screened porch that served as a wonderful studio. Alisha was incredibly warm, thoughtful, and efficient, and her presence made the residency all the more memorable.

What began as a creative retreat gradually transformed into a journey of inner healing, as if I had immersed myself in a restorative bath of creativity. Hewnoaks gave me a gift beyond my expectations—the time, space, and stillness I had long been dreaming of."
Jing Zhou
Hewnoaks '26
"As an artist and a parent of two very small children, my approach to my studio practice requires a kind of discipline and focus regarding time and attention that can sometimes feel at odds with the very reason I became an artist. I rush to the studio, I work furiously on deadline, moving quickly from one piece to the next, one project to the next.

I can't articulate just how wild and radical it felt to just wake up, drink coffee outside, listen to the sounds of nature, read a book, breath deeply, and sketch. It opened up a space in my body and mind that I sometimes forget existed. It has already affected my practice and my life: I see an opening up in my studio, a renewed excitement, a curiosity that feels so incredibly energizing and thrilling and new again. Thank you Hewnoaks!"
Ezra Tessler
Hewnoaks '25
"I don't know if I'd ever heard my own voice so clearly. The quiet was a more profound gift than I imagined. It was intimidating to know what to do with 10 days of unstructured time when my everyday life is time blocked by the hour, but more good came from the flowy openness of each day than anything I could have forced.

It was remarkable to learn to listen for the voice of the muse and let ideas channel through me instead of just producing work to have something to show for myself.
Mollie Moons
Hewnoaks '26

Support Hewnoaks' Mission

Your support enables Hewnoaks to offer free residencies each season to more than 50 emerging and mid-career artists, providing them with the time, space, and natural surroundings to reflect, explore, and create.

Make a donation