Mud Worship is an immersive interdisciplinary learning residency focused on local Ecology, Soil, Geology, and Clay. Over the five days, participants will have the opportunity to explore a vast ecosystem in the Driftless region of Illinois. There will be daily lectures, workshops, and group discussions with an abundance of studio time. Each night we will gather around the bonfire, where participants are encouraged to discuss their experiences and thoughts from the day.
Mud Worship offers plenty of time to roam the land and collect and harvest natural materials and affords time away from the busyness of daily life and unplug from technology.
MW Residents will learn to locate, identify, process and work with local clays into workable clay, slip, and terra sigillata. The residency will conclude with a communal pit firing.
Residents are encouraged to camp on the grounds of the residency, immersing themselves in the land with little access to technology. (Although there are options to stay in an airstream camper or to find lodging closer to town).
*** This residency combines place, applied science, and clay. Connecting to the waterways, connecting to the woods, connecting to the prairie, connecting to the plants, connecting with each other. Making from a place of connection, of kinship. This experience is raw, connecting with a place of discovery.
Co-facilitated by :
Nance Klehm, www.socialecologies.net, IG: @spontaneousvegetation
Chris Salas, www.mestizopottery.com, IG: @mestizo_pottery
Details:
When: May 20 - 25, 2026 (Wednesday- Monday)
Where: NW Illinois in the Driftless region, Pachamanka Freeport, IL 61032
Cost:
Total Cost of Residency: $900 per Person
Registration Fee: $150 (applied to cost of the residency)
Limited to 15 People
**Payment in full due before the beginning of the residency.
Deadline for Registration: Sunday April 26th, 11:59pm
Learn more about the location of the residency, Pachamanka
You will receive a request for additional information upon registration.
Questions? Send an email to mestizopottery@gmail.com
Mud Worship is an immersive interdisciplinary learning residency focused on local Ecology, Soil, Geology, and Clay. Over the five days, participants will have the opportunity to explore a vast ecosystem in the Driftless region of Illinois. There will be daily lectures, workshops, and group discussions with an abundance of studio time. Each night we will gather around the bonfire, where participants are encouraged to discuss their experiences and thoughts from the day.
Mud Worship offers plenty of time to roam the land and collect and harvest natural materials and affords time away from the busyness of daily life and unplug from technology.
MW Residents will learn to locate, identify, process and work with local clays into workable clay, slip, and terra sigillata. The residency will conclude with a communal pit firing.
Residents are encouraged to camp on the grounds of the residency, immersing themselves in the land with little access to technology. (Although there are options to stay in an airstream camper or to find lodging closer to town).
*** This residency combines place, applied science, and clay. Connecting to the waterways, connecting to the woods, connecting to the prairie, connecting to the plants, connecting with each other. Making from a place of connection, of kinship. This experience is raw, connecting with a place of discovery.
Co-facilitated by :
Nance Klehm, www.socialecologies.net, IG: @spontaneousvegetation
Chris Salas, www.mestizopottery.com, IG: @mestizo_pottery
Details:
When: May 20 - 25, 2026 (Wednesday- Monday)
Where: NW Illinois in the Driftless region, Pachamanka Freeport, IL 61032
Cost:
Total Cost of Residency: $900 per Person
Registration Fee: $150 (applied to cost of the residency)
Limited to 15 People
**Payment in full due before the beginning of the residency.
Deadline for Registration: Sunday April 26th, 11:59pm
Learn more about the location of the residency, Pachamanka
You will receive a request for additional information upon registration.
Questions? Send an email to mestizopottery@gmail.com
