Wealth and poverty are polar opposites.  One exists because the other does also.  We all have a relentless tug-of-war between these opposing forces in our spirits, minds, and bodies.  These paintings are the stories of myself and others as we learn to no longer fight this tension, but rather ebb and flow with it.

Here we find a place of beauty, a development of character, a depth of knowledge, a source of wisdom, and a garden of gratitude.

It’s here where I choose to live,

holding the hands of my neighbors

as we sway in a communal dance of praise

to the One who gives and takes away both wealth and poverty.

“Make sure you are inspiring people, not giving them another distraction.”

- Donald Miller.

I said that we need to use our words to clean up the messes our emotions make.

I beg of you to watch this and encourage your emotions to lead you in response.

This will take days for me to gather the right words to process.

I am trying get a screening of this in Nashville when it comes out this year.  If you have any connections or desire to help me with this, please let me know.

Between my 4 god children,  my 45 friends who have 2.5 kids each, and volunteering in the preschool at my church, I continually find myself surrounded by toddlers. I tell them to “use their words” as an attempt to thwart their  over-dramatic emotional outbursts.  It never works.  Uncensored action often thinks quicker than rational thought.

I was recently in a situation where I understood the plight of the toddler.  My instinct was to burst out in tears and maybe even let out a few good grunts.  It was uncontrollable even in my best attempt.  I had no time to stop, think rationally, and then come up with the words that would best relay the way I was currently feeling.  The tears started and I excused myself as not to blanket the room in awkwardness.

Actions are great at showing our emotion of the moment, but it takes words to make sense of the messes they leave behind.  I have made it the purpose of Creative Spillage to communicate to others that it’s okay to make a mess.  If I believe this in art, and in life, then I must also believe it with our emotions.  Not everything can be explained, some things just have to be experienced.

So yell, scream, cry, and make a mess if you feel like it.  Just be prepared to use your words to clean up afterwards.

How fun will it be to watch your life unfold over the years!

Here are the details:

When:  Tuesday January 31st, 7p-9p

Where:  Creative Spillage Studio – 1201 Villa Place Suite 201 Nashville, TN 37212

Who:  I only have enough supplies for 10 women!!

What to bring:  I will supply the fruit basket, date stamper, ink pads, index cards, and some hemp twine to tie them up!  You need to bring your own post cards.  This is where you can add your own personality.  Ideally, these are 3×5 in size.  Any wider will not fit.  They could be vintage postcards found at an antique shop, or you could laminate your favorite photographs!  This part is up to you!  If you have trouble, or would like me to grab some extra postcards for you, just let me know. (and of course , bring your favorite wine and snacks!)

How much:  $20.  You can pay with cash/credit/or check the day of.

RSVP:  Reserve your spot ASAP!  I would love to have more than 10 women but will need to make sure I can order supplies in time.  RSVP by leaving a comment here or emailing me:  laura@creativespillage.com

Sometime the wind changes and we must be willing to go with it.

I’m devoting today to figuring out how to get my day-dreams out of my head and into the real story of my life.

This piece of artwork by Sabrina Ward Harrison describes best where my heart is today.

If you are ever in need of creative inspiration, Sabrina has a line of books that will rock your world.  Brave on the Rocks and Messy Thrilling Life are a few of my favorites…

You are cordially invited to:

I’m working on our first project.  I will announce it next week, because I need to make sure I can make it myself!  (what a novel concept, huh!) I have a pretty fantastic idea though. I’ll post more details soon, but go ahead and mark your calenders!

Who know this whole Pinterest thing would be so inspiring?!  I Love it!

Look through some of my Pins here!

Also, I’d love some feedback from you in order to make this successful! Please leave a quick comment or shoot me an email.  Thanks!  I look forward to Pinteresting with you!

What day of the week would you want to have a Pinterest Party?

What time is best for you?

Would you rather bring your own supplies or have them provided?

Well I realized that I have not shared with you the paintings these secrets turned out to be!  Forgive me for the delay but here they are!

“Winter” 30×30 Acrylic, Paper, Oil Pastel on Canvas. $400

“Autumn Harvest” 30×30 Acrylic, Paper, Oil Pastel on Canvas. $400

“Wildflowers” SOLD

‘Evening Wind” 16×16  Acrylic, Paper, Oil Pastel on Canvas. $125

I had the honor of facilitating a community painting for Compassion Internationals Annual Artist and Speaker Retreat this week.  It was two days of wading through what it  means to Live a Meaningful Story, led by Donald Miller.

It will take months, if not a lifetime to process the wealth of wisdom that was spoken over those two days.  I’m going to attempt to dive into a few of those conversations next week.  As for now, I wanted to share the painting with you.

Do you remember all of those paper paisley’s we cut out a few months ago?   (Look here) Well, I did the same for this painting. During a time of reflection, each attendee was given a paisley and some markers to write down their thoughts on what it means to participate in God’s great Story.

That evening I took each story and made them into the painting you see above.  When you get close to the canvas you can see some of the handwriting in the paisley wind.  Each story is moving and traveling and interacting with the others.

I can’t begin to put words together to praise God enough for his Ultimate Display of Creativity.  Living a meaningful life is my greatest attempt to do so.  Community paintings are a visual reminder that we are part of something larger.  We have a responsibility to ourselves, to God, and to our neighbors throughout the world to live our stories with creativity, risk, wonder, childlike faith, and purpose.   How beautiful.

Many of you are asking about the new studio.  It’s up and running and fast becoming home.  I finished my first painting in the space and I’ll share it with you tomorrow.  Enjoy the tour!

My dad built these beautiful ledges to match the pre-existing wood beams.  Aren’t they beautiful?

I can be a little OCD when it comes to organizing.  I love it.

All of these boxes are from IKEA.  Very affordable.

This free standing tissue paper holder is a dream come true. I tucked two boxes underneath it for scraps.

My dad also built this 8ft wall of paper for me.  It’s a piece of art all in itself!  This is for everything that’s not tissue paper.  Most of these papers are made from Black Ink.  You can find them at Plaza Artist Materials or Paper Source.

My trusty Anthropologie apron, covered in years of paint.

We made a backsplash for the sink out of an old paint pallet.  We turned the painted side toward the wall so it’s a clean, wipeable surface.  This might be one of my favorite parts of the room.  The hanging baskets have holes in the bottom so we move them to hang on the inside of the slop sink when we are drying paint brushes.

A tool chest holds all of my paints.

The paints I use most often I put on a ledge.  They are easily accessible and rather beautiful to look at.

Thank you all for your amazing support as I enter this new season of life.

To see my art, go to www.LauraAmstutzWeibezahn.com

If you are ever in the Edgehill area I would love you to swing by and say hello! I’ll be there every day next week and from there on I will be in on Mondays and Fridays unless an appointment is made otherwise.

Creative Spillage Art Studio

1201 Villa Place Suit 201

Nashville, TN 37212