ARTISTS

Lithic Alliance, Switzerland @lithic_alliance

(initiated 2020 by Dani V. Keller, *1987, Münsterlingen; MFA Goldsmiths, BFA Gerrit Rietveld), works in active collaboration with geological matter in a more-than-human collective. Their practice explores animism, the rights of nature, and ecological coexistence through sound, movement, and installation. Engaging with minerals and their vibrancy as communicative agents, Lithic Alliance investigates interspecies exchange beyond traceable signals. Site-specific works foster speculative dialogues on deep time, queer kinship, and near-future scenarios, offering a post-anthropocentric approach to collaboration, listening, and material agency. Lithic Alliance’s work has been shown internationally and awarded amongst others with the Zurich Art Grant, The Kiefer Hablitzel/ Göhner Art Prize and were selected for the Most Beautiful Swiss Books 2019. They have been artist in residence at Museumsquartier Wien, Rupert Vilnius and ProHelvetia South America.

"The residency at Alto Residency gave me the time and setting to connect and listen to a place, and all its interwoven actants. Intentions became crystal clear, crystals bringing clarity. The reassuring trust in my inner creative drive and letting free the fluttering ideas which can be caged in by expectations is probably one of the most valuable knowledge I’ve achieved. Alto Residency offers a portal into the wild to connect with with nature, to merge into a ground and breathe with it".

Six

Six was an artist we were lucky enough to host here at Alto Paraiso Art Residancy. She creates beautiful stone sculptures, often celebrating the female form. During her stay, she carved several stunning pieces for Mariri, which you can see displayed here. Shes now based in london after studying more carving.

Adele Clifford, United Kingdom

Adele is a performer, visual artist and costume creator who uses movement to explore sexuality and sustainability. During her stay at Alto Art Residency, she created crochet costume pieces and worked on developing her movment. Her pieces and drawings were inspired by the natural beauty and sounds of Alto. She also helped Mari in archiving photographs from Madame Jojo’s cabaret club, an iconic element of the 90s London drag scene.

Krystyna. Painter from Ukraine @krystynachka

A few words from krysryna "My time at Mariri during the art residency was a really special experience. I got to work on a mural seascape project while spending time with a wonderful group of artists. The space was super inspiring—peaceful, with very few distractions—which made it easy to focus and dive into the creative process. What made it even better was the sense of community. The artists and volunteers quickly became close friends, and I’m sure these friendships will last for years to come. Having tasty vegan meals provided also helped us stay grounded and focused on creating. Mariri is tucked away in the most magical landscape—it feels like a fairyland for anyone who wants to reconnect with nature, take a break from the outside world, and just create freely. Mari, her team and all her animals are also very special and helped to make the experience.

Jenny Hviding

During my stay at alto residency I focused on making textile pieces that are going into a liberation blanket. Sparked by the ongoing genocide in Gaza, and for the liberation of the Palestinian people. And all other indigenous groups, suffering from settler mentality, occupation and a loss of owning their own lives and rights.
Everyday I did small demonstrations and filmed them, uploaded them on instagram as a silent protest. It got me blocked from insta and shadows banned, but it’s always a good idea to act upon what should be common sense. Equal rights for everyone.I also continued my painting practice and painted several works with acrylic and oil pastels. As always my camera was with me wherever I went and documented a lot of the plants and surrounding nature with the my 35.mm.

The residency opened up several possibilities for collaborations, friendships and food for thought. I also had the time to focus on textile and made paths for new projects, that later came to be in 2025. Being so immersed in that kind of wild jungle nature, havin the sounds so close to me. Living in tree top houses and sleeping by in hammocks, is some the I go that will always stay with me. And to some extent effect my work and where I choose to be. Thankful for the learning and Haux Haux to the nature and the people doing their thing.

Daniel Hellmann

"A L T O Art Residency was a wonderful place and being there in the jungle for 6 weeks was a profound and important experience for me. My room was an open tree house with view on the jungle, often visited in the morning by a group of monkeys. A dream context to do research, write and experiment. Mari is a very inspiring and generous host, and we had numerous conversations about art, climate activism, wildlife conservation, regenerative lives, and we organized a protest photoshoot against road constructions and the deforestation that goes along these new infrastructure projects.

Listening to the continuous buzz of the insects was a suitable context to write my new play about queer animal sexualities, and thanks to Mari’s contacts to local musicians, I could produce a finished song that reflects on the existential similarities of insects and men.

I had an incredible time and really fell in love with Brasil, its thriving culture and resilience. My time in Alto Paraiso allowed me not only to reflect, write, rethink my practice, but also to spend a lot of time in nature and surrounded by plants, bugs, monkeys, snakes and birds. Chapada dos Veadeiros is a magical place and I feel blessed to have been able to swim in the crystal waterfalls and see the beauty of the Cerrado, all while also witnessing the ongoing destruction, from illegal fires just a few kilometers away from the residency to the neverending monocultures. For this, it was really helpful to have a car, which I would recommend for at least parts of your stay.

One of the highlights were the delicious vegan meals that were prepared for us at lunch. It was a blessing to be in a place, that does not only care about the wild animals, but also about so-called farm animals by keeping them out of our plates. Thank you, Mari, for holding the space in the middle of the jungle for so much love for this earth and all of her creatures."

Hana Mori

Olivia Sprinkel

Jatoba

It’s a young slim tree. The leaves are oval, and most of them hang in pairs, but not all. The wood is very hard. The trunk is slightly wrinkled in places. Small ants are scurrying up and down. There are eyes along the trunk, where branches have grown and then fallen off. I see a face with eyes. It’s the watchful tree.

Mamoeiro

The mamoeiro tree is as you enter, marking arrival. It has a smooth light brown straight trunk, with leaves radiating from the top. The bulbous fruit hang, full, ripening in the sun. I am struck by the markings on the trunk of the tree. There are scars all the way up from the branches that have been shed as it has grown. Shadows of butterflies imprinted. Scars that mark growth, tranformation. And the shape of lips, calling us to speak out to make that transformation happen. The butterfly calling tree.