"Joy is..." by Sara McMahon
I created this piece as a celebration of Merideth and her mission in this world to bring Joy and creative freedom to her fellow artists.
About the artist:
Sara Carmer McMahon, a cut paper artist from Seattle, showcases her passion for art through intricate hand-cut paper creations. Using only a sharp blade and a single sheet of paper, Sara's work captivates viewers with its unique storytelling elements. Drawing inspiration from diverse sources, including her own photographs, Sara infuses her personal touch into each piece, capturing moments with depth and emotion.
As an applied improv facilitator, she specializes in teaching listening skills, playfulness, empathy, connectedness, and liberation from fear of failure.
Most recently, she has created and illustrated The Playdate Deck, a 65-card deck of Two-Person improv-based games designed to increase connection, playfulness, and relationship resilience. More information about her artwork and improv facilitation can be found at www.saradelighted.com
IG: saradelighted
Wild and Free by Nathalie Duflos
'Wild and free' shows what the soul of a woman looks like if she would allow herself to just be. The big, almost messy brushstrokes nudge the viewer to release their inhibitions.
About the Artist:
Nathalie's art is the visualisation of a story of resilience and growth. Each piece shows the profound evolution from despair to empowerment. She aspires to inspire, bridging the gap between adversity and triumph, serving as a beacon of hope for those facing their darkest moments. Her life's purpose is to share the transformative power of art, igniting a spark of possibility and resilience within every soul.
IG: @nathalie_duflos
Impression Of Yorkville by Noah Schwartz
On an East River ferry, I felt disappointed the filthy windows would prevent me from snapping my anticipated pictures of Manhattan. Observing the grime's filter-effect, taking photos anyway, and seeing what would happen, I went home from my Artist Date with a picture beyond anything I could have conceived.
About the Artist:
I am a writer. My highest aspiration for my writing? That it connects with people who need it in the way my favorite art connects with my soul.
IG: @twayward
It Is Well With My Soul by Mieka P
I am standing in the truth of who I am, but not without faults. And yet, this is who I am- all of me.
About the Artist:
Creating beauty in every expressive way I know how like my one, true Father above. I am a quiet and gentle soul, here to live out the purpose of God, with God, the best I can.
"Beneath the Giants" by Megan Afansev
In "Beneath the Giants," the artist celebrates the unconventional beauty of trees, the bumpy, crooked, giant, tiny, imperfect ones. These are the trees that put a smile on your face. She invites viewers to find joy and empowerment in life and their imperfections, echoing the resilience and magnificence of nature's giants.
About the Artist:
Megan Afansev is an artist and educator based in Pacifica, California. She has a deep passion for the arts, which she traces back to her formative years spent sewing and quilting with her grandmother in rural South Carolina. Megan has a background in fashion design, having worked at renowned brands such as Kate Spade and Ralph Lauren. Alongside her professional endeavors, Megan holds a master's degree in art education and currently serves as an elementary teacher, nurturing young minds and fostering a love for art. At the heart of Megan's work lies an exploration of the intricate relationship between nature, patterns, and place. Drawing inspiration from hiking and traveling, she endeavors to capture and convey her unique perspective on the beauty of the natural world. Through a vibrant palette and diverse mediums, Megan's work encapsulates her personal experiences within various landscapes. As both an artist and educator, Megan's mission is to inspire young learners to explore their creative potential and cultivate a sense of stewardship toward their surroundings. Her art serves as a catalyst for reflection and connection with nature, advocating for sustainable practices and empowering future generations to enact positive change through artistic expression.
IG: @habitatartstudio
Poem for my Inner Critic by Noah Schwartz
"Poem for my Inner Critic" I was doing my morning pages on Wednesday, March 13, 2024 as part of Week 5 of the #sunflowerTAW cohort facilitated by Merideth. About 2/3 of the way through, this poem came out fully formed; still can't quite believe it.
About the Artist:
I am a writer. My highest aspiration for my writing? That it connects with people who need it in the way my favorite art connects with my soul.
IG: @twayward
"Creating with the Creator" by Cheryiah Sunshine
This piece was inspired by the section on Bach and how he asked Jesus to help him make music, which is a daily practice of mine as well. This piece represents the Holy Spirit tugging on me, inspiring and guiding me in my art practice because I couldn’t do anything without His help.
Cheryiah Sunshine, collage artist, delves into the exploration of her interpersonal connections through tape portraits. With each piece of her art, she invites viewers into her cherished memories, hoping they may find familiar faces from their own lives. Her creative process begins with reflection, often centered around her family. She sifts through family photo albums retrieving treasured moments. Using these images as her foundation, she meticulously sketches out her compositions before breathing life into them with an array of tape varieties. Her choice of tape as a primary medium is rooted in its vast spectrum of colors and patterns. She blends these diverse elements, seeking out compelling contrasts in color or relationships between organic and inorganic shapes in each work. Cheryiah has recently begun incorporating the block printing technique into her work, adding depth and dimension to her practice. Cheryiah currently calls Waipahu, Hawaii, her home
IG: @artbyryiah
"Finding Voice" by Valerie Angulo
The empowerment that comes from acknowledging and embracing our heart's passion, our creative fire, and expressing it outward to share with the world rather than trying to keep it locked up inside.
Hi! I'm Valerie Angulo, a visual artist from Long Island who is currently based in Brooklyn, NY. I've loved painting and drawing ever since I can remember and have always found it to be such a meditative and expressive necessity in my life. I enjoy using acrylic, pastels and watercolor and love vibrant beautiful colors! I'm currently in the process of starting my art business, and it's been such an adventure even in these early stages :) I'm really excited to have found the Artists for Joy community and look forward to further collaboration with new friends from the Sunflower Taw! :) <3
IG: @vangular
Ode to the Creative Cracks in the Universe, a digital composite photograph by Sally W. Donatello
After reading your book an interior conversation began about what ignites the creative act, and then multiple cracks in the universe appeared where the light of a floral forest illuminated a connection between a mountain range, skyscape and stream. I envisioned that space where creativity persists, smelled the freshness and inventiveness of nature’s pull, heard the stream beckon, tasted seeds of emotional richness, and embraced the joyful moment the image became a reality within the sanctuary of the cracks.
About the Artist:
Educator, photographer, writer and steward of the land are selves that thread through my creative survival. These platforms are interwoven in self-expression, a way to communicate who I am as I really try to live a life of meaning and questioning. Intentionality converges to make works that consider, digest, ponder and query nature’s metamorphosis. And provoke curiosity, dialogue, doubt, emotion, surprise, sorrow and uncertainty. The creative act and process produce image making and storytelling where senses heighten, mood lifts and outer forces are non-existent. Time is suspended. I float with nature, becoming engaged and enlivened. An indefinable sanctuary blossoms and coexistence allows for experimentation, exploration and spontaneity. My muse, nature, illuminates her legacy and sparks mine. Human nature and nature combine to interpret the lens that incites inspiration. My hunt for a creative voice grasps time’s continuum, even as it slips into the past. The image making and writing battle anxiety and stress, and provide a quiet place for this introvert to be set free to be. Nothing else fills the space but the work and me. I pledge a tribute to the life cycle of plant materials with their fragility, persistence and resilience. As wild and tame botanicals enter various stages, I observe architecture, character, palette, and wonder: examining what is possible. Creative survival is a philosophy, a reimaging and reinventing of the omnificence of the non-human world where I become narrator and voice for nature’s story.
© Copyright 2024 Sally W, Donatello All Rights Reserved
"Oneiric Navigation I" by Kristy Eden
A multimedia meditation on wayfinding by intuition, surfing the intense feelings that drive us to artistic expression, and navigating by the light of our dreams when the seas grow rough.
About the Artist:
Kristy Eden is an everything machine working in commercial illustration, acrylic paint, and cyanotype after two-and-a-half decades in public education. Raised in the San Francisco Bay Area of the 90s, the riot grrrl spirit is alive in Eden’s art: surreal reflections on sustainability, power, and gendered expectations are rendered in symbolic vocabulary drawn from fairy tales, Sailor Moon, and a childhood spent camping in the American West. Building upon her artistic foundation as a printmaker, Eden employs hand-wiping, collage, and double exposure to bring texture and depth to her 2-D work. Kristy Eden is primarily interested in tension and contrast, what each side of a binary reveals about the other: nature vs. civilization, matte vs. glossy, and the qualities assigned to femininity versus everything else.
IG: @thundermine_workshop
DAMASK by L.M. Beatty
One of the first artists I ever learned about (and was consequentially inspired by) was Georges Seurat & his use of pointillism. Although I've been professionally curating my own style of painting for years, I've avoided trying my hand at pointillism; feeling some sense of inadequacy to be able to separate larger shapes into tiny pieces. But, I was inspired by the story of Alex in "The Artist's Joy" to create a mosaic of some sort and challenged myself to push through the awkwardness of trying something new. Extended note: I chose to paint this damask rose from a photo I took on what turned out to be a very joy-filled day in London. After I had a bit of an unpleasant panic attack in the Tate Britain, I walked outside to find a garden full of breathtaking beauty. Stopping to literally smell the roses allowed me to rest and reset--a practice I again experienced as I meditatively created this painting. This piece is a personal reminder that joy and art (and roses) have to be cultivated, and that the bigger picture of life is really made up of tiny moments of growth.
About the artist:
I am an artist & author (+ yoga instructor, freelance copywriter, adjunct communication professor, baker and coffee enthusiast because life is too short to pigeon-hole oneself). I hold a double major in international business and political science from Olivet Nazarene University and an MA in cross-cultural and sustainable business management from the American University of Paris. My artwork is an expression of my collective experiences of seeking significant moments in life. I paint using various media (oil, acrylic & watercolor) & illustrate with ink—particularly landscapes, architecture and floral concepts. In 2024, I debuted a solo art show “Post Scripts,” which included 55 pieces of original art. My art is installed in Starbucks and has been featured in Reverie Lit Magazine and Splendeur. As a writer, I have completed two manuscripts (a historical fiction novel & a book of poetry), and have also contributed essays, poetry and food features to Relevant; Why I Stopped; Free the Verse; Dark Thirty Poetry; Sunday Mornings by the River; Splendeur; and the Chill Subs newsletter.
IG: @l.m.beatty
"Joy" by Jessica Wang
An improv quilted and embroidered piece on the prism of multi-colors that joy encompasses.
About the artist:
After a three month spiritual creative journey with Merideth, Jessica is finally embracing her artistry. Working with words, ink, watercolor and textiles, she aspires daily to bring her inner world into her outer world.
IG: @cozyyeogi
"Quiet Spots in the Busy" by Lisa JH Gardner
Chapter Three of The Artist's Joy, "Practice is a Spiritual Practice," resonated with me. I need to protect pockets of maker energy in my manager world.
About the Artist:
A mixed media artist, Lisa JH Gardner has spent her life in northeast Indiana. Lisa earned her BA in fine/commercial art from Saint Francis College. Primary mediums currently are watercolor and pen and ink. Lisa has been creating art since she was a child, with her sketchbook always at her side. After focusing on photography while she raised her four children, she has spent the last decade exploring various mediums and subjects. In 2020, her painting "Demand, Declare, Amend" was chosen for the Hoosier Women Artists Show, hanging in the attorney general's office until 2022. She is on the board of directors and on the ritual committee for Sophia's Portico, a feminine art and spirituality center in Fort Wayne. When working in watercolor, the paint and water need to be allowed to flow, to do its thing. This is the beauty of the medium, and the challenge. Rising up to the challenge requires putting in your "brush miles" which requires time and dedication. I am actively making changes in my life to create time to open up my creative spirit. "Quiet Spots in the Busy" is a visual reminder to step out of the busyness of the day and spend time in devotion of my creative spirit.
IG: @lunaspidraartist
Opposite Dichotomies by Yolanda Chetwynd
The drawing that I’m offering comes from a prompt that was given about coming to terms with two opposite dichotomies. It somehow captures the fun, the depth, the tenderness of our creative relationship.
About the Artist:
Being an educated artist and an art educator I took all the formal required steps. Brought up in London I did my BA at Camberwell School of Arts and Crafts. Next did a higher diploma in fine art at University College, London -Slade School. After settling in the States I completed a masters of professional studies degree in art therapy at the Pratt Institute. I have been recognized for both my art and the decades of teaching aesthetics. Yet at the heart of my work there remains a playfulness and childlike quality, that I embrace. I recognized in Dr Merideth Hite Estevez, unique abilities to bring out the essence of creativity in herself and others. Her brightness and clarity, which I can hear when she plays the oboe, also manifests itself in everything she does and I’ve seen it all. At first I was her colleague at DiAE, were we designed workshops together. Then during Covid I was her student, where we explored the teaching artists mandate. I’ve been her patient as she’s coached me one on one. I’ve taken the Artist’s Way clusters and listen to her podcasts. I’v even done the Enneagram Workshop where I found out I was a nine wing one, of course. Merideth has guided me along the path to coming home to myself. The book Artist’s Joy is something I will treasure and ponder on for years to come.
IG: @yolandachetwynd
Joy is a feeling with all the colors by LIBWA
"I can be joyful and still accept that not everything in life is perfect. I allow the darker colors to exist while I choose joy."
About LIBWA:
LIBWA is my artist name and the acronym for Life Is Better With Art. I am a self-studied artist from Germany and recently relocated to Boston for my day job. I am a mixed media artist: I paint with acrylic paint and pastels. I also add drawing elements, at times I also work with collage and stitching elements. My work is abstract and characterized by color and energy. I often use organic forms and combine them with strong and subtle lines. I celebrate life with my art: our life has ups and downs, it is complex and yet, or perhaps because of that, beautiful. In my paintings I process and communicate experiences, memories and encounters. My aim is to create positive moods in my audience. I work intuitively: the painting develops step by step, without having a predetermined, fixed result in mind. Many layers overlap, and it is often possible to trace the twists and turns the painting has gone through in the course of its creation. I showed my art in a solo exhibition in Germany and a group show in Boston MA, USA.
IG: LIBWA.de
"The Colors of Joy" by Diane V. Mulligan
For this piece, I created an abstract floral watercolor painting, which I then turned into digital art featuring one of my favorite quotations from "The Artist's Joy."
About the Artist: Diane V. Mulligan is a novelist, watercolor artist, and high school English teacher from Worcester, MA. Diane has written three novels and two novellas and has published a number of poems, essays, and short stories. During COVID, she rediscovered her love of painting. She particularly enjoys urban sketching and plein air painting. When she's not writing or painting, she can be found strumming her guitar, baking up homemade goodies, or hiking with her dog.
Website: www.dvmulligan.com
Instagram: dianepaintsflowers
"Discovering joy in the cracks" by Lesley Rogers Hobbs
"Discovering joy in the cracks" is a poem about finding my way back to a long-held dream of being a writer. A dream I postponed for decades while raising a family and being "busy."
About the Artist:
I am an Irish poet/writer/artist currently living on Puget Sound with my husband and dog, Maggie. Other than writing and art, I enjoy gardening, yoga-ing, and being with our adult kidlets and grandchildren. I published my first piece of fiction in an Irish newspaper when I was fourteen and for a brief moment, believed I might have what it takes to become a writer; an unsupportive parent and thoughtless teachers quickly rid me of any writing dreams I may have harbored. Over the years, I blogged about yoga, health and travel but was ready for something that scared the bejeezus out of me! With stomach lurching, I wrote my first three poems and applied to an advanced poetry workshop; I was thrilled to be selected. In the two years since, I have discovered new-to-me poets who are changing my world – Pádraig Ó Tuama, Andrea Gibson, Jericho Brown, Ada Limón. I formed a poet group from that first workshop and we meet weekly; together we have written countless poems, attended AWP23 and pushed each other beyond our comfort zones. They encouraged me to submit which has led to publication in Hyacinth, Querencia Press, Tiny Spoon, Open Door, and Cirque among others. I discovered a long-buried passion and spend many hours each week reading, noodling and writing poetry. I have learned that my style is spare and lyrical, emotive and vulnerable. I am currently working on a hybrid (poetry, essay and art) memoir of trauma, disability and chronic illness.
IG: @opentoabundance
Listening by Kim LaFond
This piece is about listening to your inner artist In what the next step in the painting will be.
About the Artist:
My name is Kim and I’ve been painting For about 35 years now. I took it up as a craft while I was raising a family . I would go once a week to a craft shop and learn from a teacher there . It soon became an outlet for me to be with adults and learn new techniques. The more I learned, the hungrier I became to learn. From there, I became involved in local Painting guilds and would go to conventions every year To learn more. I Started sharing my gift with others once a week at my house as we formed a community of painters that soon became friends. I’ve painted on 2 x 2 squares and restaurant walls. I was privileged to paint murals for a family owned Jimboys restaurant . I have always felt blessed with a gift of painting and love of color and I wanted to give back with gratitude. I was able to give back by painting several rooms for my local Church children’s ministry .That was extremely memorable for me . Thank you for taking the time to read a part of my journey.
IG: @artfulsoul2
Exuberance by Rachel Holland
This piece is all about the joyful movement and form of the horse.
About the Artist:
Growing up in North Georgia around animals gave me my basis for what motifs keep recurring in my art. The challenge for me is to do drawings and paintings that express a moment or feeling. I am drawn into the forms of the animals and then have an intuitive sense of what to do with the painting. Using multiple mediums at times adds dimensions and textures to the work that create more depth and complexity.
IG: @rachelhollandart
Wabi-Sabi by Darcy Leigh
The aesthetic that values impermanence and incompleteness (p30). Art and nature are both imperfect and perfect. Permanent and impermanent.
About the Artist:
I am the creativepreneur behind the Creative Jam, a brand new space dedicated for designers and creatives, artists and other makers. (Www.creativejamspace.com) My fingers love to hold a pencil, paintbrush, camera, sander, glue, microphone and anything natural. My junior high school teacher told me I wasn't much of an artist, derailing me from my true love of art for 30 years. Guess what , I'm back. I am known for my generosity, laughter, and solution generating abilities. The Creative Jam solves the problem of no space to create and loneliness of the creative.
IG: @creativejamspace
Inner Joy by Kristin Vanderlip
"Inner Joy" is a 4 x 4-inch oil pastel painting of a colorful horizon representing the inner artist's bright, bold joy. This piece is inspired by the recovery of the untamed, unabashed joy and adventure I felt as a child (whose favorite color was (and still is) "rainbow").
About the Artist:
I am an oil pastel artist, a writer, and the founder of the Pen & Mend Collective. I believe that creativity is an invitation to connect with and become a conduit of Hope in a hurting world. My abstract oil pastel mini paintings utilize color to express and evoke emotional experiences. I'm drawn toward colorful abstract horizons and landscapes that offer contemplative spaces for connecting with different emotions and seasons of life. My hope is that my art will speak peace and hope into your space and life.
IG: @kristinvanderlip
“Dare To Dream” by Tina Trep
Your little dark, blue funk seems to engulf you, but that space is so very small in comparison to all the bright possibilities and opportunities on your horizon. So, rest in your space, then be brave and dare to dream.
Artist statement:
I am a photographer, mixed media visual artist, and a potter.
Light reflects, refracts, illuminates, and casts shadows: it captures me; not just my attention, but an actual part of me. My art is my attempt to capture that which has captured me. Not the image as much as the emotions and contemplations the image births.
A serious illness and subsequent retirement in 2021 have inspired me to rediscover and nurture my inner artist. I’ve been on a journey to find out. One of my photographs has been jury selected to be on a banner in the 2024 Jamestown, NY ArtScape exhibit.
IG: it_captured_me
IG: tinatmakeit
Finding You In Spiritual Practice by Paul LaPointe
Inspired by Chapter 3 of The Artist’s Joy, A Guide to Getting Unstuck, Embracing Imperfection & Loving Your Creative Life, Merideth Hite Estevez, June 25, 2024.
This piece depicts one’s journey through a creative life. It moves a person who feels empty and unfulfilled and suggests a path towards finding the youthful dreamer of an earlier time. Here the person’s steps have led from an unfulfilling discipline of production and performance to a more spiritual discipline of devotion to creative expression, process, fulfillment and joy.
About the Artist: Currently, a hobbyist in graphic design, life drawing and portraiture. Applying an iterative process in creating through learning, listening, practice and observation.
IG: @iteratingmycreativeprocess
Create in the Cracks by Nicole Luongo
About the artist:
Nicole Luongo is the author of Naked Desires, a poetry book for everyone who is searching for love, delighting in love, or hoping to understand love.
Nicole is also a disability advocate dedicated to raising awareness for cerebral palsy (CP) + selective dorsal rhizotomy (SDR), a life-changing surgery for adults (like herself) and children with CP.
In 2021, Nicole started a campaign to get the White House to light up in green on March 25 for National Cerebral Palsy Awareness Day. Her efforts led to a tweet that has 60K+ views. This sparked a movement, and a Change.org petition which received 40K+ signatures in less than two months.
In 2019, Nicole created the Go Green for CP campaign. She became the first person ever — without compensation or prior experience; this was a solo endeavor — to secure at least one building, landmark, etc. in almost all 50 states to light up in green on National Cerebral Palsy Awareness Day (March 25) and on World CP Day (October 6), with lightings in three different countries.
Nicole has been in myriad media, including the Today Show, NBC 6 South Florida, the Sun-Sentinel, and more. Her HuffPost article SDR: Life-Changing Surgery for Cerebral Palsy is the reason many adults and children from around the world have learned about, had SDR surgery. Her work has also been published by Medium, The Mighty, Thrive Global and Yahoo.
IG: whatcplookslike
The Creative Instrument is You by Danielle Mulligan
The Creative Instrument Is You
Portrait, Line drawing of Merideth Hite Estevez
About the artist: Creativity is always tugging at my heart. I enjoy portrait work, and mixed media art journaling. I will often embed layers of my art with inspirational words or hidden messages that inform the work and give it a personal dimension beyond its visible surface. I live in beautiful upstate New York and enjoy kayaking on the Mohawk River. I envision learning to paint landscapes is next on the horizon! -Danielle Mulligan
IG: @danimullsart
"Joy Comes to Life" by Elmer Perry
In the introduction, you wrote about joy being a dusty old library. I was inspired by this image your words drew in my mind. I pictured the old library, the notes dancing off the page, and a ballerina springing from the book.
About the Artist:
Elmer is a multi-passionate artist who lives and creates in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. His current passion is book binding journals and considers a project successful when the book opens when he has finished. Painting is his life-blood. Paint can turn an ordinary day into a great day and a bad day into a good day. Elmer believes that all creative work feeds other creative work. He is lost without, at least, paper and pencil or pen.
Instragram: @elmer.perry.jr
"Artist Child" by Kelsey Helen Bogan
This piece is about healing the relationship with yourself and the artist child within. It connects to the concept of seeing your brokeness repaired in gold and valuing the light of your artist child.
About the Artist:
My passion for art began when I was a little girl. It was my comfort and often my only coping mechanism. I have always dreamed about becoming a professional artist and I am proud to say that I am now pursuing that calling. I am a multi-passionate artist. My mediums include calligraphy, mark-making, acrylic washes, sketching and oil painting. My process is intuitive and spirit led. I am personally repairing the relationship between me and my artist child. That is one of the reasons I am so very excited for Meridith`s book, “Artists for Joy.” This book couldn't be more timely and I am eager to see how it will help me along my artist journey. I am currently in the midst of preparing my first professional series of work! My hope is to bring art into the world that is a true reflection of my own soul. I believe that art has an immense power to heal and bring love and light into the world. It brings beauty into our homes. It supports our mental health. ART IS NECESSARY! If you are reading this, I would love for you to join me on my artist journey.
IG: @bravelightart
Home Seeking Sea Turtle by Lauren Patton-Word-Watterson
About the Artist: I have painted and drawn out stories since early childhood. I suppose having a librarian mother who taught me to love illustrated stories is partially to blame. However, I am at my best when I am helping to expand the creative endeavors and talents of others. I have a knack for understanding what type of push a person needs to reach their potential. It is, of course, inspiring to see gifted students soar in their abilities. Even more rewarding is helping the underdogs, and castoffs find a corner of the world where they can shine regardless of their innate talents.
"Joy is a feeling with all the colors in it" by Leia Davliakos
This is a representation of how creativity can take a black and white journey and make it beautiful. Since “joy is a feeling with all the colors in it,” there is a space for imperfection leading to a breakthrough of color. Each piece of the journey is meaningful and an artist who experiences black and white moments will appreciate the true joy of discovering how creativity will flourish from imperfection.
About the Artist:
Evangelia (Leia) Davliakos is a 20 year old artist from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She is an Architecture student with a passion for painting. Her work has a classical Mediterranean flare. In 2022 and 2023 Leia attended oil painting classes in Paros, Greece. Her fascination with natural elements of culture while in Greece has led her to experiment with a plethora of mediums including Byzantine Encaustic wax and oil. Leia’s artwork will be exhibited internationally in 2024.
IG: @leiadavliakos and @leiasart_
A Feast of Creativity by Jenny Gallo
Surrounded by whimsical pieces of tapas, the phrase 'creativity is tapas, not pie' is joyfully depicted in vibrant colors, capturing the essence of savoring life's diverse creative moments. This artwork embodies the spirit of 'A Feast of Creativity,' inviting us to relish each small, satisfying endeavor on our artistic journey.
In the artful dance of life, creativity is often seen as a grand feast, a pie to be devoured whole. Yet, Merideth Hite Estevez offers a different view—seeing creativity as tapas, not pie. Tapas, like the small savory dishes of Spanish cuisine, invite us to enjoy and appreciate diverse flavors one bite at a time, nurturing our artistic souls. Visualizing creativity as tapas rather than a whole pie shifts our perspective from scarcity to abundance. Each small act of creation is a complete and satisfying experience, not just a slice of a larger whole. This view fosters an environment where we are more likely to feel enriched and less pressured, where we can enjoy the process without the rush.
About the Artist:
At Carrot Top Studio, my creative path has surprisingly evolved from designing clergy stoles to encompassing stationery, tea towels, and art licensing. The approach of working slowly, in small bites, has not only shaped my creative business but has also allowed for immense joy and gratitude at every step of the journey. May this illustration of tapas remind you to savor the many flavors of creativity, be open to the joy of the little things, and choose gratitude for every small bite that fuels the journey.
Piecing it Together by Laura Shrader
My submission is a mini quilt, actually it can be used as a mug rug to sit under your hot beverage. This piece is called "Piecing it Together" as that is how most days feel to me, as I work 9-5, care for my kids, and "Create in the cracks" as Meredith writes about in Artists for Joy. This piece serves as a reminder to embrace the imperfection and find the joy, no matter the day.
About the Artist:
Laura Shrader is an artist based in New York State and the owner of Swing Kitten Handmade. She is a mom, an educator, lover of cats and coffee- not necessarily in that order.
Swing Kitten Handmade evolved from my love of creating joyful and functional pieces for the home. Inspired by all things Golden Era including swing dancing and big band music, and films from the 1930's and 1940's, my choice of fabrics reflects earlier times. I'm so glad you're here. Pull up a chair and stay awhile. Check out my pieces and feel the quilt joy.
Instagram: @swingkittenhandmade
Website: https://swingkittenhandmade.com/
Aritists for Joy " by Sarra Lev
Title: Artists for Joy
This is my first ever attempt at anything visual art related. Just thought I’d give it a try for the fun of it.
Sarra Lev
"I've had a tantrum" by Oswald Perez
It is a poem that's based off of self-coaching question #4 on page 64 of The Artist's Joy. A poetic tantrum.
About the Artist:
I've published a book of poetry, A Poetic Journey, Staying At Home in October 2020. I've also had my poems "An American Tourist In Italy" and "The Sea Cycle" published in the literary anthology, Groundwaters. I've had my writing featured in the best-selling multiauthor books "Authentic" and "Going Places". I've also been featured on the podcasts "Don't Keep Your Day Job", "Blessons" and "Home Room".
My work attempts to bring a life with Cerebral Palsy into focus. As in my words, I hope to inspire others to know that their circumstances aren't the sole thing that defines them. A full life can still be lived no matter the difficulties one deals with in their daily lives.
