About Us

The Portland Arts Retreat was founded to support writers and visual artists, familiarize them with the Oregon area, and to provide a sanctuary which encourages the creative process through peace and quiet, clean air, clean water, and close proximity to nature and wildlife. The retreat is located on a historic property and was designed by Portland architect Wade Hampton Pipes In 1912.

Our History

The Portland Arts Retreat was inspired by art lovers Richard and Dorothy Sikora. Richard was an Ethics professor at UBC in the 70’s and 80’s, and Dorothy was a visual artist whose art was featured among notable female artists in Canada. The couple owned a classical record store called Sikora’s Classical Records in Vancouver Canada that was beloved for over forty years. They moved to Portland because of its focus on the environment and its progressive political values.

The Sikoras’ only daughter, Anne Sikora, had the idea of the arts retreat to support the creative community of Portland. Anne lived in NYC for thirty years where she had a psychotherapy practice. Her children Ashley and Lucy are on the board of directors reviewing potential manuscripts with other writers for the arts retreat. Their father is a literary agent in NYC, so this is a family affair.

Richard was a friend and colleague of some of the most prominent philosophers of the 20th Century. He co-edited a book with Brian Barry called “Obligations to Future Generations” that was seminal to the field known as generational ethics. Among the philosophers visiting his home were A.J. Ayer, Derek Parfit, and Peter Singer. Dorothy received a Fulbright in the 1950s to study art history and philosophy in France under Merleau-Ponty. The Sikoras opened a village mall called Walnut Square in Berkeley California in the 70s that featured one of the first Pete’s Coffees stores and Papyrus. They owned a historic building in Pioneer Square in Seattle called the Pioneer building that was home to many professionals. They adored old buildings and started an organization called Urban Care in California to preserve old historic homes.

Mission Statement

The Portland Arts Retreat is meant to foster an environment where ideas can take root and flourish.

The retreat’s model is inspired by Hawthornden Castle, a well established retreat in the UK. Hawthornden uses an application process to find the most qualified writers who are serious about their craft.

The idea is that folks are able to dream and imagine free from the pressures and demands of daily life. We request that people put away their cellphones and find other arrangements for childcare so that they can focus their attention on artistic work that might not otherwise be possible.

As it happens, there are many eyes on the board of directors reading and evaluating manuscripts including a disabled person, a Native American, a Pacific Islander, a transgender woman and many local Portland voices. A rich tapestry.

  • Anne Sikora

    DIRECTOR

    The Director of the Portland Arts Retreat is Anne Sikora, PsyD. Anne had a psychotherapy practice in NYC for 30 years and raised two children in Brooklyn. Anne worked in publishing in her 20s. She was a journalist writing an arts column for the Whig Standard, Canada’s oldest privately owned newspaper. She helped a well-respected editor, John Benedict, who established the Norton Anthology of African American Literature. The Anthology was edited by Henry Louis Gates, who brought marginalized literature into the forefront of the canon. She also helped edit works by Adrienne Rich, Audre Lorde, and Rita Dove, and worked at Grove Press where she edited a David Mamet play based on Chekhov's "The Cherry Orchard." She married a prominent literary agent and entertained many well-known writers such as Jhumpa Lahiri, Geoff Dyer, Jeffrey Eugenides, Nam Le, and Steve Toltz. Her children are very interested in the arts and serve on the board of directors. Anne's long-time partner, Chris Awalt, is a novelist and professional editor. He is on the board of directors along with Anne's children, Ashley and Lucy, who have an avid interest in reading and writing.

  • Chris Awalt

    Chris is an editor and a novelist. He is also an avid photographer and a man of letters. He is Anne’s long-time partner and was raised in the same town that Friday Night Lights was written about. He is a jack of all trades and never finds a problem he can’t fix with excellence. He has two daughters, Bella and Olivia, and two stepdaughters, Ashley and Lucy.

  • Lucy Simonoff

    Hello, My name is Lucy Simonoff and I graduated from the University of Edinburgh majoring in Sociology and Psychology. I have a range of experience freelance audio-editing podcasts, as well as content creating for non-profit organisations. I am also a book lover, and I look forward to discovering new literary voices and providing them with a place to flourish. Currently I have a full time job with a non profit organization assisting disenfranchised youth as an addiction and housing specialist. I am currently in a book group and enjoy discussing literature and helping the artist retreat.

  • Ashley Simonoff

    Ashley Simonoff grew up in Brooklyn, New York. She is well-versed in the classics and reads Latin. Ashley graduated from the University of Chicago where she studied geophysical sciences. She does volunteer work at a fossil lab at the university. She works at the Chicago Zoo and adores reading in her spare time. She is currently applying to graduate programs in Library Science.

  • Yulia Steshenko

    Yulia grew up in the Bronx, New York, in a rundown home packed with books. She developed MS at fourteen, became legally blind at sixteen, and stopped being able to read print shortly after, but maintained her love of reading through audiobooks. She graduated from Harvard College with a concentration in psychology. While homebound after college, she tried and failed to become a memoirist. With the help of the Commission for the Blind, she became a Certified Financial Planner to offer pro bono support to New Yorkers with disabilities and is now a Vice President on the board of the Center for Independence of the Disabled, New York. She still loves listening to and discussing books.

  • Seth Fowler

    An experienced Customer and Client Services Representative, Founder and Former Director of FHS LGBTQ Alliance, Personal Assistant by day, Drag Queen by night.

  • Heavenly Hedenberg

    Heavenly is a long-time resident of Oregon, where she got her Associates Degree from Mount Hood Community College. She has an unbelievable skill for noticing details in her work ethic and an eye for design. She also loves the outdoors, is an experienced barista, baker and gardener, and is studying to get her Real Estate License.

  • Kaiaka Ardana

    Kai is the house manager at West 13th Street. He has pretty much single-handedly renovated the property entirely, transforming it from an overgrown haunted house to its former splendor. He is a native Pacific Islander from the Big Island of Hawai’i and the father of two young kids. He is the oldest child in a warm Hawaiian family line.

  • River Spencer

    Hello, my name is River K. Spencer and I'm a student at Portland State University currently studying political science with an emphasis on conflict management and the American judicial system. I'm passionate about creative endeavors, and I love to see artist dreams realized with the fruition of their work. I want to be an advocate for those who want to work and are passionate about creative work. My committee oversees the obtaining of grants for the Writers Workshop so that faculty and pupils can best have their needs met. Thank you.