Description
CATHARSIS
noun. The process of releasing, and thereby providing relief from, strong or repressed emotions.
A sanctuary where art becomes medicine, and your personal journey becomes a sacred work of creative transformation.
A 7 day art journey set in the lush Gaia Centre in Constantia, Cape Town, Catharsis is more than a retreat—it’s a way to find your way home through emotions and mental blockages. A curated container that holds you gently as you unravel, remember, and rise.
A Journey from Pain to Power
Catharsis invites you to bring your whole self—your grief, your joy, your doubt, your light—and pour it into creation. Through art therapy, movement, ritual, and voicework, you will be guided to alchemize emotional blockages into meaningful, expressive forms. Whether it’s through poetry or paint, this retreat opens a sacred channel for your truth to move through you and out into the world.
This is not about creating technically perfect artwork. It’s about reclaiming your inner storyteller, honoring your emotional landscape, and allowing your hands, your voice, and your body to speak what your mind has kept quiet for too long.
The Healing Path Through the Chakras
Each day of the retreat is centered around a different chakra, moving from the root to the crown. In the first half of the week, we ground deeply into the lower energy centers—exploring themes like grounding in, feeling safe in imperfection, releasing the inner critics and overcoming all blocks and procrastinations to begin creation through embodied practices and nature rituals.
As the week unfolds, the focus rises into the upper chakras—supporting your voice, vision, and spiritual connection. You’ll be gently guided to shape your personal story into a final creative piece that reflects your healing journey: a piece of art you’ll take home, infused with your heart, your growth, and your truth.
A Held, Soulful Container
From the opening blue lotus ceremony to the final earth altar closing, you are never alone on this journey. The retreat is co-facilitated by two powerful healers—Jaimie Pratt, a Reiki practitioner and intuitive guide who weaves tarot, channeling, and poetic expression into her healing work; and Philippa Schmulian, a seasoned metaphysical teacher, quantum healer, and ceremonialist who has guided transformational circles for over 25 years.
You’ll also be joined by Yasmin Ezzideen, a Cape Town-based artist whose work honors the divine feminine and shamanic creation techniques. Her presence mid-week adds a deep artistic anchor, helping you begin your final piece from a place of embodied inspiration.
Each day begins with meditation, yoga, and chakra-focused journaling. From there, you’ll move through workshops in drawing, painting, poetry, and voice activation. Evenings close with soft group circles.
For those called, there’s the option to engage in a safe, supported micro-dosing experience with plant medicine—deepening your access to subconscious insight and inner guidance.
The Heart of the Retreat
What makes Catharsis truly unique is its marriage of the mystical and the tangible. You’re not only engaging in inner work—you’re making something with it. Your pain is painted. Your truth is performed. Your healing becomes visible. And through that visibility, something beautiful happens: you reclaim your voice.
Whether you’re someone who’s been carrying the weight of unspoken trauma, or someone yearning to reconnect with your joy and creative spark, this retreat offers a bridge. A way to move forward with clarity, energy, and purpose.
You’ll laugh. You’ll cry. You’ll paint. You’ll write. You’ll be seen—and you’ll see yourself, perhaps for the first time in a long while.
The Details
28 August to 3 September 2025 | Gaia Centre, Constantia, Cape Town
The retreat runs daily, with no overnight stay. It’s held at the soul-rich Gaia Centre, a villa nestled in nature and surrounded by well-known local art.
The total investment is R11,500, with payment plans available for those unable to make a once-off payment:
3-month option: R4,000/month
5-month option: R2,300/month
And if you reserve your space before 31 May, you’ll receive an early bird discount of R1,000.
Your investment includes two nourishing meals a day, all workshops and healing sessions, an art kit (canvas, journal, graphite, brushes, and paints), and access to yoga, plant ceremonies, and guided meditations.
A Final Word from the Heart
This retreat is a space for the seeker, the healer, the quiet creative, the old, the young, the masculine, the feminine or the curious soul. It is for the one who has held so much inside and is now ready to let it move.
You do not have to be perfect. You do not have to be prepared. You only have to say yes.
Yes to yourself. Yes to your healing. Yes to the art that lives within you, waiting to be born.
Come as you are. Leave as you truly are.
Follow us on Instagram for alcohol-free creativity evenings, art therapy deep-dive workshops; introspective and social options, as well as retreat specials and updates!
To reserve your space or ask questions, connect with us:
Jaimie: +27 71 483 1479
Philippa: +27 83 232 3364
