Quarantine Events’ Artist tips on emotional technique: The best way to hug a cactus

Picture this: A massive cactus right in front of you. And you’re giving it a big old hug.

But between you and those spines… there’s something. Pillows. Thin as a whisper. Just enough to keep you from getting shredded – but not enough to leave you unchanged.

That’s the place. The place where you feel, but you don’t fall apart. Where you touch what burns, but don’t go numb. Because even pain, when dressed right, can be something you can sit with. It’s not cozy. It’s not cute. But you can bear it.

“That’s the place from where art crawls out.” Explains Carles Gomila, Founder & Director of Quarantine Events. This concept might not sit pretty at first, but bear with us, because it works.

Carles and the Quarantine Events team have experience encouraging artists to find powerful and genuine sources of their creativity. Made up of a unique group of individuals who devise out of the box, week-long events, Quarantine encourages artists to find and cultivate their true selves. But as their slogan goes: this isn’t just another damn workshop. Quarantine experiment, push boundaries, and continuously hone their craft by listening to the feedback and input of past participants and mentors.

Fundamentally, fear can hold an artist back.

Carles Gomila has met the universal fear that lives in so many artists: “Tons of artists get stuck in a destructive loop; chasing applause from folks who are just as lost as they are. Repeating, copying, looking over their shoulders – and they end up cheering each other’s insecurities.”

They paint like they’re scared of being disliked. They create like they’re afraid it won’t sell. Most artists are trapped in that echo chamber of doubt, using their talent to hide the fact that they’re terrified.

“Every time these artists try to be someone else, they’re really saying: ‘I don’t deserve to be seen.’ ‘They’re better than me.’ ‘I wish I was like them.’ And that sticks like glue and can stain their work. Ever notice how the harder you try to impress; the worse things get? So take a second and look inwards: what are you hiding when you paint?

“Look there. Right there – where you didn’t dare to go.” Says Carles. “That’s where your real work was. Because here’s the twist: the artists who blow our minds… aren’t trying to blow our minds.”

We naturally try to avoid fear and pain, but according to Quarantine, artists can grow if they can overcome these self-imposed boundaries. For example: breaking out of the loop of needing to be liked. To get into that uncomfortable space.

(Desire + Pain) × Protection = Bearable connection

And so, back to the analogy at hand; here’s a little math for the nerd inside you: (Desire + Pain) × Protection = Bearable connection.

Sounds about right, doesn’t it? Art – among other things – is just that. A soft collision with what’s eating you.

It can be the itch you hide but can’t stop scratching. And hey, it doesn’t have to be some dark emotion. Sometimes, it’s beauty so raw it hurts to look at.

“You don’t dig up the cactus. You understand it.” States Carles. “You hug it – no drama. Calm. With style. And from just far enough to stay whole. It’s important to keep balance, always. What I’m talking about isn’t therapy. It’s emotional technique.

“We’re not promising to save you here at Quarantine. We’re not your saviour. We’re not selling sage and salvation, or burning incense, or any of that crap. But for seven days, we hand you weapons, strategies. Stuff no one else has ever given you, my word. The kind of thinking and practices that you didn’t know you needed. I’m not talking paint-by-numbers tricks, but sharp tools of the mind. New ways to jostle how you see things. So fundamentally, the cactus stops looking like the enemy – and starts feeling like the key.

So, learn how to properly hug the cactus!

Quarantine’s techniques aren’t for everyone, but if this is tickling something in your brain, it may be perfect for you. They can give you to right tools so when you hug the cactus – that sting? You can use it. You carve deep, through your art. You can use its spikes to stab even deeper – through your art.

At Quarantine, they don’t banish demons. They guide you on how to bargain with them. How to train them. Quarantine gives you the tools to make your demons build for you.

Their next event takes place from April 13 – 19, 2026. Tears in Rain is an experiment designed to cut you out of the student mindset for good and help you to rewire your perspective. Are you ready?

Quarantine Events: Tears in Rain

April 13 to 19, 2026

Tears in the Rain will gather 63 artists from around the globe, along with seven esteemed mentors:

Yulia Bas | Phil Hale | Adam Miller | Sean Layh | Mu Pan | Yuko Shimizu | Martin Wittfooth

Interested in applying and chatting to one of the Quarantine team to find out more? Now is the time – click the link to learn more and don’t miss out!

Quarantine Social Media Accounts + additional blogs

Website | Instagram |Escaping the Artist’s ‘mental prison’ | How an Art Retreat Becomes a Social Experiment | Quarantine Events Brutally Honest Oracle