THE ART OF BEING FULLY ALIVE: Give life full permission to live through you.

“Ever since I can remember, I’ve loved drawing, creating, making, conjuring, and exploring… yet so much of it remained locked inside me. Every time I sat down in front of a blank sheet of paper without a plan, I would simply freeze. Completely blocked. Then came an unexpected invitation — though these things are never really accidental — to spend a week painting. Everything emotional within me immediately said yes, and for once, my mind didn’t have a single objection or logical excuse. It was time to face that little fear of mine, dressed as a blank white canvas. Brina somehow knew exactly which key could unlock something in me — how to throw me off balance and challenge my constant need for symmetry, clean lines, and perfection. It is frightening not to know what adding more water to your brush will do, how one layer will show through the next, or what will happen when you make a mistake… and then turn that mistake into a masterpiece. In my work as an interior designer, I always tell my clients: ‘Don’t worry. Whatever mistake is bothering you most, I’ll transform it into something beautiful — and perhaps your interior will become truly special precisely because of that “mistake”.’ And yet, during this week of abstract painting, the hardest thing for me was allowing chance and mistakes to happen — letting them add flavour to the story and reveal new dimensions from which my creativity could grow. Thank you, Brina. You have an extraordinary gift. Thank you for recognising and awakening that gift in me, too. And of course, it wouldn’t have been half as much fun without Gloria and her little dog Lu, and my dear wild lioness Urša. T H A N K Y O U.”

“I don’t even know what to say… There were tears. Anger came, and so did sadness, impatience and restlessness… then tears of joy, passion, dancing, gratitude and exhaustion. With Brina Torkar, it is never just about learning how to paint. It is about being sensitively and intuitively guided through the entire process. I am deeply grateful for this week and for having had the opportunity to give myself this experience. Thank you, Yemanya. Thank you, Brina. Thank you, Petra Gartner Duxa and Gloria Velikonja, for the hours and hours of silence in which we were simply allowed to be.”

"It was amazing. The whole week was truly wonderful. We learned so much, and we had so much fun. I really learned patience — something I don’t normally have much of. Painting teaches you that you simply have to be patient. And technically, I gained a lot of knowledge and skills that I didn’t have before.” Brina somehow always attracts incredibly interesting people. It’s like she gathers little gems around her. And this amazing energy always emerges between everyone. It becomes a real journey — such an incredible experience. And where did the inspiration for the rainbow antlers in your painting come from? That came to me while I was travelling. My spirit animal was a deer with rainbow antlers, so I decided to paint it. Beautiful. Thank you."

“The pool was amazing! The best was and super tasty food, and especially all the time we spent together. We became such a great team — that was probably the best part. Painting didn’t feel difficult, but Brina showed me and explained so much along the way. I definitely learned a lot from her. She also taught me how to paint faces and create more dimension in my work. Oh, we had a lot of fun! It was wonderful. I would absolutely do it again — especially with the same group. We had such a great time. Relaxing. Painting. Relaxing again. It was really, really good."