Casa Julfa is a place where creative practices meet and cultures diffuse. It’s a sanctuary for makers and thinkers to grow, to rest, and to be, sheltered from the distractions and demands of contemporary society. Housed in large seventeenth century townhouse, in the picturesque ville d’Art et Histoire of Montmorillon, France. It’s a place where things move slower and life is a little easier to navigate.
The area has a long history of creative practice from writing to pottery, basket weaving, wood, leather, lace and paper work and an ancient history of exquisite natural pigment painting, folk medicine and organic farming, which continues today.
Casa = family, a physical and metaphysical place.
A space where we can truly exist, where we can speak freely, where all the feelings are allowed, a place where wounds, failures and faults are cured with time and love. A sacred shelter for all those that pass through her doors.
Julfa = An ancient Armenian village, ancestral homeland of founder Corinne Aivazian.
A point of diffusion between the east and the west. A celebration of ancestral artistry, of international cultural exchange. Julfa is a manifesto for collective growth. It’s symbol of resistance. Julfa has been and always will be home
For those wishing to work with clay in our pottery, we support all levels through our Ceramics Residencies. For everyone else who is seeking the time and space to work independently, we offer our Makers and Thinkers Residencies.
We no longer have an application process as we believe it contributes autocratic and patriarchal systems within creative spheres. After five years of receiving residents from all walks of life, from all over the world, we trust much more in Casa Julfa’s power to attract the most special souls far more than a process that increasingly feels outdated and divisive.
Casa Julfa is run by makers and thinkers who are dedicated to facilitating artistic development and creative growth through earth based practices. Here you can read more about our ethos from our sister organisation Terra Ancestral.
