A small room in Boston
- At January 17, 2020
- By Lisa
- In Experiences, Features, Wellness, Writing
2
I write from a small room in Boston without a view. There are two west-facing windows which open to the mustard-colored clapboard siding of the neighboring three-story, and at this time, it is an advantageous vantage point. It keeps my attention focused on my writing and my mission.
Several weeks ago, I took to rearranging the furniture in this room to something I felt was more conducive to creativity. Pushing my desk into a corner I made a cozy place for concentration. A great chair, good lighting, and a variety of sacred items that I believe help my process. It’s a comfortable room also containing an old unused fireplace in the corner — it’s interior bricks painted white against a red wall. There are piles of books, journals, candles, and two sleepy cats. I see this arrangement as something I hope will prove beneficial in the full immersion of my craft because an enemy also lurks within these walls.
The War of Art, written by Steven Pressfield, discusses this enemy. It is known as Resistance. Pressfield refers to Resistance using a capital letter and assigns to it some powerful personality traits. It is what he considers the major deterrent of artists being able to do their work. It is a formable enemy — invisible, insidious, impersonal, and infallible. The battle with Resistance is fought on a daily basis.
Read More»The work of artist Rick Garcia
My most recent cover story for Venü Magazine, The Art and Heart of Rick Garcia, Winter issue, 2019-2020.
An internet search of artist, Rick Garcia, will show only the lightest of online footprints revealing his website, a couple of YouTube videos, and his work at C. Parker Gallery in Greenwich Connecticut. Yet Garcia has created for some of today’s most highly visible organizations, corporations, events, and causes.
His work has garnered worldwide attention with images that are sometimes joyous and other times heart-rending. He is prolific. His palette is vibrant, often reflecting his love of the tropics, and with an economy of line he displays great skill in illustration. He has an approachable manner and an easygoing way of expressing himself. In other words, he’s pretty cool.
Rick Garcia has worked three times as the official artist for the GRAMMY Awards, setting the look and feel of the live ceremonies and gracing the covers of the organization’s program covers, CDs, posters, and apparel. In 1998 and 2003 he was commissioned by The United Nations Postal Administration to bring awareness to the dangers facing the rainforest and its inhabitants. The stamps he created earned his series the title of “most beautiful stamp series of 2003”.
Read More»What now – In pursuit of purpose
- At October 03, 2019
- By Lisa
- In Experiences, Musings, Writing
- 2
I’ve been silent, I know.
For the last few weeks (months) I’ve been considering my state of what Lyn Slater at Accidental Icon, has called her “whatnowness”. We are not alone.
Thirty year olds are moving toward a new decade of numbers. Seventy year olds, first time empty nesters, college grads, political activists, women’s rights leaders … It seems we’re all considering what has gone before, where we are now, and questioning where we go from here.
Read More»The stories we tell
- At November 20, 2018
- By Lisa
- In Narcissistic Abuse Recovery, Writing
- 2
Finding your new personal narrative.
Human beings have told stories for 40,000 years. Whether by written or spoken word, or pictures painted on cave walls, these are the tales of our experiences, our culture, and history. Story telling has been core to the human experience since forever. But what makes a story true and what deems a story worth being told? And more importantly, what about the stories we tell ourselves … about ourselves?
I’ve written stories for many years now. Whether I’m interviewing an artist, a Yemeni activist and journalist, or ten Swedish superwomen, I’ve always endeavored to capture the authenticity and truth of my subject. The narratives that I’ve told myself—about myself—over the last two years, however, have been usually quite harsh and often untrue. I think this is the case for many of us as we reflect on past mistakes or engage in self-degradating emotions. There is no fact checking for our inner critic. But it is these negative self critiques which we most often use to define who we are.
Read More»Teaching myself to read, again
- At October 21, 2018
- By Lisa
- In Narcissistic Abuse Recovery, Wellness, Writing
- 4
Nearly everyone has had the experience of reading a paragraph or a page in a book, getting to the bottom of it, and then realizing they have no idea what they just read. In 2017, this was happening to me on a regular basis. In fact, it was happening all the time. As a writer, not being able to focus or comprehend reading material was obviously problematic.
This had never been an issue for me in the past. Prior to my experiences in Sweden, I had laser focus. But after my return to the US, I found I could read news articles and the simple short posts people would write on social media, but I couldn’t focus on longform or fiction. My abilities to research and to stay on task were also significantly reduced.
Why the change?
Read More»Artist Katie Swatland
Artist Katie Swatland has an amazing story. It was my pleasure to help her tell it.
My most recent piece for Venü Magazine:
Katie Swatland’s Alchemy Visions, Curiosity Without Bounds:
In the winter of 2016, artist Katie Swatland covered all her clocks to eliminate the illusion of time, hung a “do not disturb” sign upon her studio door, and stepped into a journey of self imposed artistic isolation for 29 months. She re-emerged on June 11, 2018 finally feeling the need to share the fruits of her labor – the Alchemy Visions collection – nearly complete with the exception of three final works.
She is an intriguing individual, as is evidenced not only by her art but the way in which she sees, reflects, and interacts with the world. While many artists proclaim their work to be multi-disciplinary – it’s quite trendy these days to do so – Swatland is the real deal. Because of an intense curiosity about the world and its cultures, her art is informed with layers of meaning – expressions based on ancient philosophies, the natural sciences, history, folklore, and mythology.
Having trained for sixteen years in the art of oil painting, Swatland also received a degree in mechanical engineering and has a passion for theoretical physics. It is this background in scientific learning, I believe, which allows her to intellectually explore and ask methodical questions of nature and the unknown.
The start of Alchemy Visions began, as most journeys do, with a first step …
Read More»Summer Issue of Venü Magazine
I’m so excited about this issue of Venü Magazine. Knowing how difficult it is to be in the publishing industry these days, I have to take my hat off to Tracey Thomas and her staff. The amount of work that goes into creating a magazine is certainly a labor of love. Venü issues are not only available online but the beautiful print editions, with their satin sleek covers, are wonderful to hold and read. Many people tell us that they keep past issues as collectables. Additional thanks also goes to Nichole D’Auria for always making my stories (and all the stories in Venü) look so gorgeous with her layouts. And thanks to the editors who make our stories so much more readable and grammatically correct.
For this summer issue of Venü Magazine, my article on the work of artist Betsy Silverman graces the cover. This is the second time I’ve interviewed Silverman and like the first interview, I’m still inspired and impressed with her eye for architectural perfection and attention to detail. Silverman creates highly detailed and vibrant scenes of Boston using only carefully curated and cut pieces of paper. All from recycled magazines. Not a single brush stoke of paint nor a hand drawn line exists in her work.
Read More»Artscope Magazine and the NYC Dance Project
- At July 06, 2018
- By Lisa
- In Art, Editorial, Features, Photography, Writing
- 0
It’s an honor for a writer to know that a story they have crafted will grace the cover of a magazine. Personally, it tells me that my writing has obtained a certain standard – I take that recognition quite seriously and am always grateful for it. For the artists I write about, it is always good news when they learn that their hard work is representative of a publication’s monthly (or bi-monthly) issue.
This summer’s issue of Artscope Magazine (July/August) shows the stunning photographic work of Deborah Ory and Ken Browar’s NYC Dance Project. It was wonderful to work with Ory and Browar, as well as gallery owner Susan Lanoue, for the story.
I include the article for you here.
Photos courtesy of NYC Dance Project.
The Breath of a Dancer
With a single click, a moment in time can be captured forever. It’s extraordinary, really, when you think about it. Occasions, places, and historical events are captured by the internal mechanisms of a camera, by the skill and passion of the photographer, providing us with that which our own eyes may not see. The click of a shutter can capture something so slight as the breath of a dancer.
Read More»
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