Laurie Vestøl
Laurie Vestøl is an island-based artist with a background in landscape architecture and city planning. Her practice combines swimming, kayaking, and underwater photography in the southeast Norwegian archipelago, exploring personal myths of transformation through sensory, site-specific performance installations.
Her upcoming work River—part of Porsgrunn’s city art loop in August 2025—features 300 porcelain talismans activated by river currents, performers, and local participants. She is also co-creating Floating Conversations, an annual sea-based happening at the Boathouse on Sandøya, combining video, textile sculpture, and performance installation.
Through Red Moon Studio, Vestøl organizes residencies, workshops, and happenings at the Boathouse. Her work embodies silent activism—a quiet, embodied form of environmental engagement.
Are we, perhaps, searching for the oceanic feeling—a deep sense of oneness with the world around us?
International Residency Network:
The Boathouse Norway
The Boathouse Residency is a new international artist residency on Sandøya, a small island in the Langesund archipelago, Telemark, Norway. Launching in summer 2026, the 10-day program is open to MFA graduates, students, and professors from AIB, Lesley, and Clark. Applications open in October via the Art + Everywhere platform.
Hosted by artist Laurie Vestøl, the Boathouse is a one-room studio with a loft, kitchen, and bathroom—ideal for solo artists or couples, but able to accommodate small groups (up to four beds). An adjacent pier with seating for 15 supports small gatherings and water-based artmaking. Residents receive full room and board, a kayak, and a custom program of visits to local cultural and natural sites. There is no requirement for a final exhibition—artists are encouraged to reflect, experiment, and engage freely with the island environment.
Located in a region rich in water-related heritage and ecology, the Boathouse will serve as a hub for a growing international network of residencies focused on environmental, humanitarian, and community engagement. This pilot program will connect with existing initiatives led by Lesley alumni Chuck Davis (Rogers, Arkansas) and Deborah Read Miles (RAG, Gloucester, Massachusetts), with plans to expand to Kayakwetu Hotel in Msambweni, Kenya, and beyond.
The long-term goal is to create a global constellation of place-based residencies that support artists working through “silent activism”—artistic practices that address pressing challenges such as water sustainability and climate justice through intimate, site-responsive engagement.
By supporting artists in relationship with specific bodies of water, the Boathouse Residency aims to inspire projects, co-productions, exhibitions, and participation in climate-focused festivals. The deeper value lies in nurturing artists as caretakers—translating personal insight into creative work that resonates far beyond the studio.