Ever since I was a child, art was the place where I could rest.
Studio Mahona
I had a beautiful neighbour who was an artist. Every now and then she would come and pick me up and we would create together. For me it was a way out of the chaos of growing up — and into myself. A safe space where I felt heard. Where the joyful child I was, was welcomed.
As the years went by, I forgot. Life got busy, and I got busy trying to figure out who I had to be in this rat race society. And then I hit a breaking point — one of those moments where everything seemed to fall apart.
I found my way back to my heart through art. Drawing first. Then clay, textiles, writing. Art became my anchor in the midst of the chaos. And I asked myself: what do I need right now?
The answer was simple. A space to create next to like-minded people — people longing deeply to reconnect with their heart and themselves. An art studio where I would feel held in community.
That place didn't exist yet. So I decided to build it.
I sold everything. Left Austria. Bought a flight to Mexico. Months later, following nothing but intuition, I arrived in San Marcos La Laguna. My dreams started to resurface.
I walked into the carpentry workshop of a local man and simply told him about my dream. He listened. And then he said: you can build it on top of my building.
That is really how Studio Mahona finally, finally found a place to come into existence. From there, I held the vision. Stayed true to my heart. And built — slowly, with intention — a place where people could come and reconnect through the beauty of creativity.
Studio Mahona is the place I needed and that did not yet exist.
I am here as a host, not a teacher. My role is simply to hold the doorway open. What you find when you walk through it is yours.
— Marieke
San Marcos La Laguna, Guatemala
Who I am
Who I am I am Marieke, a Belgian open-hearted creative & designer. Founder of Studio Mahona and Pulse Collective. But more than anything, I am a feeler, a lover of life and a seeker of truth.
I live my life with a heart wide open, spontaneous - guided by the whispers of my soul, in every given moment. I have spent years to rediscover the truth that lives within me, one that asks me to flow like a river: wild and free - nourishing everything it touches.
I am a creative being, an artist of life itself. I don´t believe that we create things, I believe that creation creates through us. Allowing ourselves to be vessels - for divine creativity to flow through us.
I see life as a discovery journey. I am a deep feeler. Consciousness and freedom are my driving forces, intuition and wild womanhood my super power.
My soul wants to explore and expand, it wants to open to life fully. I experience everything with my heart.
I am passionate about exploring people and their stories - I find them spontaneously on my path. This is one of the exciting ways of exploring oneself through another.
I love beauty and creativity, through everything I touch: from flowers, to cooking, the words I speak and write, the dances that move through me. Through the clothes I choose in the morning and the pottery and paintings I create at night. A passion for making houses homes through decoration, art, presence and the secret recipe: love.
I am a free, curious and spontaneous soul and with my imagination, I can create worlds, life paths, possibilities that I have not yet lived.
I am a soul on a human adventure, I am here to experience this dance to the fullest and to celebrate life in all the ways possible.
Meeting myself and others in the depth of the emotional ocean, is most likely that which lights up my soul the most!
Presence, love, creativity, mother earth, truth, togetherness.
Let’s remember the essence together.
Love,
Marieke