WHAT IS TZAK!? Since the fall of 2025, Deirdre Towers has been designing with Mara Aceves, Mexican born, Paris-based interior designer, a blueprint for a creative space for workshops, performances, and rest.
Model by Mara Aceves. The space between the sanctuary and the wave is wider now to allow for seating room for an audience.
Our 6′ wide by 9″ high structure has the shape of two hands cupping each other. The space could have built in benches, or be empty. Open at the top, the visitor naturally looks up. Our variation on a door evolved into a wave of burnt and raw wood, a symbol of change and resilience. The floor is built for dance, for tap, flamenco, percussion; it has the resonance of a drum. A mandala at the center – either on the floor or floating above the floor provokes questions and contemplation. A labyrinth of stones sets up the feeling of a journey into this sanctuary/stage. The collaborators decide whether to add plants, moss, scents, colors, flowers, and sounds to fulfill their needs.
Overhead view of sanctuary/stage, wave enclosure and labyrinth
We wish this project to be a Swiss Army knife of projects, many things to many people in different circumstances, at different times of the day– place to break the pace of working life; a space to tell stories, write stories. Every community has its own needs, its roster of talents.
Following the example of Habitat for the Humanity, we offer this artwork as a way for people to come together to construct a creative space right for them. Building on the success of community centers that offer workshops, performance opportunities, and mediation, Tzak! is a one-stop shop. We offer the materials, the design, and the carpenters for free. The community assembles the volunteers to execute it and use it to their hearts’ content.
WHY A TZAK!? “We are living in a time of constant stimulation, stress, and information overload. People may not be actively looking for a peace sanctuary,” says Mara, “but they are looking for what it offers: a chance to slow down, breathe deeply, reconnect with themselves, and remember the beauty of being alive. Many people don’t even realize how much they need moments of stillness and reflection until they experience them.”
We are investing in peace and because we believe play is essential for everyone. With a fresh perspective, everyone working and using the sanctuary becomes more grounded, a little more hopeful, and a little more alive. In the process, they learn life-skills, gain a creative outlet for the local performers and artists, and a source of pride and joy.
WHO WE ARE: Mara, daughter of sculptor/painter Gustavo Aceves, and Deirdre, daughter of an architectural buff/woodsman keep returning to spirals, natural materials, and indigenous architecture. The symbolic language of labyrinths, spirals, circles can be understood by creating them, moving through them. Together they made two other installations at Waterfront Museum and Lilac Preservation Project. They met through sound healer Rakel Terceno
Given our Irish/Mexican heritage we arrived at the name for our haven Tzak!, by crossing the Celtic symbol for Awen, inspiration, with Ik, the Mayan word for wind. 
